Heavy early voting turnout continues in S.C. How has this impacted mail-in ballots?

As the early voting total eclipses 1 million, 9 out of 10 of those cast their ballots in person so far this election year.

South Carolina received about 84,000 by-mail absentee ballots as of Wednesday with six days to go until the 7 p.m. election night deadline. Nearly 33,000 by-mail absentee ballots have not yet been returned.

John Michael Catalano, South Carolina election commissions spokesperson, said the absentee totals for this year will not reach the levels that they did in the last two presidential elections. There have only been around 117,000 ballots issued for this election. The deadline for requesting an absentee ballot was Oct. 25, he wrote in an email.

In 2016, there were 147,000 absentee ballots returned and 441,000 in 2020 when no excuse was required.

Catalano said the ballots must be returned to the county election office by 7 p.m. on election day. Mailed-in ballots with a postmark does not apply There are a few exceptions, like for those in the military serving overseas, but 99.99% of absentee ballots have to be in before 7 p.m. on Election Day.

Through Oct. 29, 988,950 people had voted early in person in South Carolina.

In mid-October, election officials raised concern over the absentee ballot process at their monthly commission meeting.

“I don’t want to sow distrust, but I would not vote absentee,” Howard Knapp, executive director of the South Carolina Election Commission, told his state board Oct. 17.

The state has had issues with the post office the past two years, Knapp said. The mail coming to South Carolina that used to run through North Augusta now goes through Atlanta, which has caused a bit of concern, he added.

Mail is being lost, Knapp said, and it’s a problem that the election office has no control over.

Knapp said he would estimate a quarter of the total percent of people getting absentee ballots would be affected in some way, whether it be late ballot arrival or lost mail.

Voters can track and see if their ballot has been received on the SC election website. If they see their ballot has not been received by election day, they can go into an office and file one there, they said.

Knapp and other leaders of elections from other states were on a call with the postmaster general a few months ago where they hoped to address concerns and questions. Knapp said the Postmaster General Louis DeJoy had a pre-written statement and would not take questions.

More than likely your absentee ballot will be delivered, Knapp said in the meeting, but you want to make sure it is. Hand deliver it or have someone do it for you, he emphasized.

At the Oct. 17 meeting, Knapp and his team answered questions from the election commissioners and its chairman Dennis Shedd, a former U.S. Court of Appeals judge. Shedd asked Knapp questions ranging from non-citizens voting to how the election night process works.

Shedd also asked Knapp about post election results, and how to know everything is accurate.

The office is doing all it can to ensure that the system runs smoothly on election night and beforehand. Knapp explained that when someone votes early, they’re voting like they would be on election day in a way. The ballot is scanned and counted in a thumb drive, but no one reads that thumb drive until 7 p.m. election night.

The office mandates early testing to run the machines that count the ballots. They take a set of ballots and fill them in and run them through to check every election. The counties run their own elections, the state election commission just advises them.

This story was originally published October 31, 2024 at 5:00 AM.