WINNSBORO – Early voting for the primaries began Tuesday and will continue until 5 p.m., June 10.
For this two week period, polls will be open for in-person voting without an excuse as was required in the past. Polls will be open from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. weekdays during this two weeks, but will be closed on the weekends.
Excuses, which include age and disability status, among other things, are still required for voters who cast absentee ballots by mail.
Polls will reopen on election day, June 14, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
All Fairfield County early voters will cast their votes at the county voter registration and elections office in Winnsboro during this two weeks.
Procedures early for voting are much the same as on election day. Voters must present a photo ID (driver’s license, passport or military ID.)
Fairfield County has approximately 16,000 registered voters.
A list of early voting sites for each county can be viewed at www.scvotes.gov/early-voting.
If there is a runoff election, voters will have three days to vote early. For example, early voting for June runoffs will be held Wednesday, June 22 through Friday, June 24, ahead of the runoff election on Tuesday, June 28.
Voting hours and locations for the runoffs will be the same as the primaries.
The bill that established true early voting passed unanimously in early May and was quickly signed into law by S. C. Governor Henry McMaster during a ceremony on Wednesday, May 18, 2022, in the state house, making South Carolina the 45th state to enact early voting.
But the short notice gave election offices little time to prepare for the early voters.
“Once the Governor signed the legislation, we had to scramble to learn everything. We knew it might happen, so we tried to get ready ahead of time as much as we could,” Stidham said.
“We were ready though,” she said. “Everything went very smoothly. No problems, and I’m really thankful.”
Stidham said 14 voted on Tuesday.
“I think it will pick up,” she said. “We hope voters will see this as a quicker, easier way to vote than everyone coming on election day.”
Vote early in Fairfield County
8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday – Friday
315 S. Congress Street
Winnsboro, SC
803-635-6255
I have to question the 16,000 registered voter numbers for our county. According to the 2020 Census figures, that would mean everyone 18 and older has registered to vote. Highly unlikely.