In order to vote early a South Carolinian must meet the criteria to absentee vote. To be eligible to absentee vote, the list includes: over 65 years of age, physically disabled, military, for reasons of employment that prevents voting on election day and a few other reasons. http://scvotes.org/...
The Aiken County Election Board had set up several satellite absentee voting sites around the county due to the large number anticipated to be absentee voting. One of the satellite absentee sites in the city of Aiken was supposed to open yesterday.
However, an attorney from Simpsonville, SC, a "major player" in the SC Republican Party filed a complaint to stop the satellite absentee voting.
Those wishing to cast an absentee ballot in Aiken will have to do so at the Aiken County Election Commission Office on Vaucluse Road and not at any previously designated areas.
An emergency meeting of the Registration and Elections Commission was held Monday evening after officials received a letter from a Simpsonville attorney challenging the legality of receiving votes outside the main office.
The Simpsonville attorney, Todd Kincannon, 27, practices in Columbia and is a major player in the S.C. Republican Party, serving as counsel and parliamentarian. Kincannon attended the meeting and stated his case repeatedly that his interpretation of the applicable statutes meant only voting at a specific location.
The meeting of the Registration and Elections Commission was packed last night with concerned citizens, local elected officials and organization leaders speaking out against the closing of the satellite absentee voting sites. Rev. Brendolyn Jenkins, president of the Aiken Branch of the NAACP, SC State Representative Bill Clyburn and others cautioned the County Elections Commission not to permanently close the satellite offices without asking for clarification from the State Elections Commission.
"If a decision is made, it should come down on the side of making it easy to vote," said Rep. Bill Clyburn. "People are beginning to get suspicious."
"What is your interest here?" one bystander kept asking, forcefully. "You are from Greenville, not Aiken."
Kincannon stated he was not trying to disenfranchise any voters but rather to make sure every ballot cast would count.
As our Aiken County Democratic Party Chair, John Brecht said "I think it's really unfortunate, I think it's despicable, and questionable as to it's motive."
For the time being, absentee voting can only be done at the County Elections Board; a decision on the legality of satellite absentee voting should be in just a few days.
To read the entire article: http://www.aikenstandard.com/...
Feel free to comment on the article in the Aiken Standard.
There is also an article on the topic from Augusta TV channel 12: http://www.wrdw.com/...