Nearly 440,000 SC voters cast ballots ahead of Election Day as early voting ends Saturday
Nearly 440,000 South Carolina voters have cast ballots early in person in the Nov. 8 general election that will decide governor, state schools superintendent and a handful of congressional, legislative and local races.
The state’s two-week early voting window ends Saturday, when polls are open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
State Election Commission data shows that through Thursday 438,023 South Carolinians out of the state’s total 3.3 million registered voters had voted early. By comparison, just over 100,000 people voted early in the June primary.
Thursday was the highest turnout day, with 54,960 people voting, election records show.
Counties with the highest numbers of early voters as of Thursday included Charleston with nearly 50,000 voters, Horry County with more than 43,000 voters and Richland County with more than 35,000 voters.
In addition to early voters, nearly 49,000 of 63,000 absentee ballots issued have been returned, according to state election data, for a grand total of nearly 490,000 ballots cast ahead of Election Day.
It’s too late to apply for an absentee ballot, but voters in possession of an absentee ballot are urged to return it in person with a photo ID as soon as possible, but not later than 7 p.m. on Election Day. For absentee ballots, the voter must complete the voter’s oath and sign the form with a witness age 18 or older.
On Election Day Tuesday, precincts open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.
The state Legislature passed early voting earlier this year, allowing any registered voter who presents a valid photo ID to cast a ballot at an early voting center in their county just as they would at their precinct on Election Day. Voters who can’t get a photo ID can present a non-photo registration card and vote provisionally.
A full list of voting sites in each county is available at SCVotes.gov or by contacting your local county voter registration office.
Reporter Zak Koeske contributed to this report.
