SC voters deserve to have wide access to absentee ballots for the November election

It’s clear that misinformation about our voting process works to undermine faith in a fundamental function of our democracy.

Unfortunately, voters are dealing with a great deal of misinformation about absentee and mail-in voting, much of it from President Donald Trump’s administration; according to the president, mail-in voting is bad but absentee voting is good — and especially if it’s happening in Florida.

In South Carolina, however, mailed ballots cannot be separated from absentee voting. The Horry County Voters Registration and Elections Office has about 8,000 requests for mailed ballots, and Director Sandy Martin said ballots should be mailed to voters around the first week of October.

In-person absentee voting will also be possible at the Registration and Elections Office in Conway, as well as three satellite locations that Martin expects to have established by the end of August. The additional locations will be in the northern and southern areas of the county and in Carolina Forest.

During the June primary elections, record numbers of people voted absentee in person or by mail across South Carolina; in fact, Horry County alone had close to 9,000 absentee votes.

Meanwhile, Georgetown County also had an increase in absentee voting during the June primary — and Voter Registration and Elections Director Kristie Richardson said the office has already received at least 2,000 applications for the November election.

In-person absentee voting will start in early October, and voters wishing a mailed absentee ballot can simply request a “S.C. Application for Absentee Ballot” by phoning the Registration and Elections Office.

Voters can also find the application online at SCvotes.gov — they can print the form, complete it and mail it in to their specific county elections office.

It’s important to remember that the completed form must be mailed to the elections office; Martin said some voters still mistakenly think they have completed the application process online just by accessing the form at SCVotes.gov.

Many Horry County voters who requested mailed absentee ballots for the June primary election also received applications for the Nov. 3 election — and Martin said voters who have sent requests to her office will automatically receive ballots.

Plenty of reasons

There are 18 reasons that you can cite in seeking an absentee ballot, including these:

▪ You are 65 years of age or older.

▪ You have a physical disability, illness or injury.

▪ You are assisting a sick or physically disabled person on Election Day.

▪ You are member of the Armed Forces on active duty.

▪ You will be on vacation outside of your county of residence on Election Day.

▪ You won’t be able to vote on Election Day because of reasons of employment.

Unfair criticism

The problem with blanket criticism of voting by mail is that the process varies from state to state.

Some states mail ballots to everyone on the voting rolls, but that’s not what happens in a state like South Carolina that has an established application process.

And like many other states, South Carolina has a nonpartisan state election commission.

For the June primary election, the General Assembly and Gov. Henry McMaster — noting the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic — added “State of Emergency” as an accepted reason to request an absentee ballot. When South Carolina’s lawmakers return to session in September, they should put this provision in place for the November election, too.

In whatever form it is done absentee voting benefits voters and candidates without regard to their political preferences. And it’s particularly important to make this voting option widely available for South Carolinians during the November election.

Requesting an absentee ballot

You can request a South Carolina absentee ballot in the following ways:

▪ Online; Visit scvotes.gov.

You may print the application form or you may complete the form and print it. The completed form must be mailed to the Voter Registration & Elections Office of the county in which you are registered to vote.

▪ Phone the Registration & Elections office in Conway (Horry County) or Georgetown (Georgetown County).

You can contact the Horry County office at (843) 915-5440; the Georgetown County office can be reached at (843) 545-3339.