Update: ‘Slow’ morning at Beaufort County polls

Beaufort County voters are casting ballots today in a host of local and statewide partisan primary races.

Polls across the county opened at 7 a.m. and will remain open until 7 p.m.

“The word of the day is ‘slow,’” county elections director Marie Smalls said around 11:30 a.m. “There are no lines anywhere — that’s in the southern end of the county and the northern end of the county.”

Some precincts, such as Seabrook Precinct 2 at Whale Branch Elementary School, reported only five voters had cast ballots as of late Tuesday morning, Smalls said. There were some polling stations reporting 20 or 30 had come through, she said, and Hilton Head Island Precinct 2C at Indigo Run reported “approximately 40 voters” had cast ballots.

The Pritchardville area in Bluffton was “steady with no lines,” she said.

“It’s still early,” Smalls said.

She guessed one reason for the low turnout is the lack of ballot choices. There are no Democratic Party ballots south of the Broad River, she said, and the only countywide race everyone can vote in is the 14th Circuit Solicitor race between incumbent Duffie Stone and challenger Angela McCall-Tanner.

Voters are required to bring valid identification.

The following forms of identification are acceptable, according to the Beaufort County Board of Voter Registration and Elections:

▪ S.C. driver’s license

▪ S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles identification card, including a state concealed weapons permit

▪ S.C. voter registration card with photo

▪ U.S. passport

▪ Federal military identification with a photo

The following races are contested in today’s election:

14th Circuit Solicitor (Republican)

▪ Duffie Stone (Incumbent)

▪ Angela McCall-Tanner

Beaufort County Council, District 7 (Republican)

▪ Cynthia Bensch (Incumbent)

▪ Mike Covert

Beaufort County Council, District 3 (Democrat)

▪ William Smith

▪ York Glover

U.S. House of Representatives, District 1 (Republican)

▪ Mark Sanford (Incumbent)

▪ Jenny Horne

S.C. House of Representatives, District 121 (Democrat)

▪ Grahame Grey Holmes

▪ Michael Rivers

S.C. House of Representatives, District 122 (Democrat)

▪ Bill Bowers (Incumbent)

▪ Curtis Brantley

▪ John Polk

▪ Shedron Williams

For more information on the election and voting process, contact the county elections board at 843-255-6900.

This story was originally published June 14, 2016 at 12:05 PM with the headline "Update: ‘Slow’ morning at Beaufort County polls."