S*1105 Session 108 (1989-1990)
S*1105(Rat #0393, Act #0357 of 1990) General Bill, By Senate Judiciary
A Bill to amend Section 7-13-35, as amended, Code of Laws of South Carolina,
1976, relating to the requirement that the authority charged by law with
conducting an election in each county publish notices of elections held in the
county, so as to include in this requirement notification of when the process
of examining the envelopes containing absentee ballots begins; to amend
Section 7-13-70, as amended, relating to the appointment of commissioners of
election in each county, so as to require the commissioners to appoint a clerk
from among managers for each polling place in the county and one for each
polling place in a primary, special, or municipal election; to amend Section
7-13-80, relating to the appointment of a clerk by the managers of election,
so as to delete the authority to appoint a clerk and add references to clerks;
to amend Section 7-13-810, relating to the powers of managers of elections, so
as to provide that challenges may be made at any time before the opening of
the envelopes containing the absentee ballots instead of when the ballots are
counted; to amend Section 7-15-370, relating to the items required to be
furnished each person qualified to receive an absentee ballot, so as to
require an envelope marked "ballot herein" instead of an unmarked envelope be
furnished each qualified person; and to amend Section 7-15-420, relating to
the tabulation and reporting of absentee ballots, so as to change the time for
tabulating the ballots from the closing of the polls to 2:00 p.m. on election
day, authorize watchers to be present when absentee ballot envelopes are
examined, require all return-addressed envelopes received before the closing
of the polls be examined, and make other technical corrections.
01/17/90 Senate Introduced, read first time, placed on calendar
without reference SJ-9
01/18/90 Senate Read second time SJ-14
01/18/90 Senate Ordered to third reading with notice of
amendments SJ-14
01/25/90 Senate Read third time and sent to House SJ-17
01/30/90 House Introduced and read first time HJ-18
01/30/90 House Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-19
02/28/90 House Committee report: Favorable Judiciary HJ-9
03/07/90 House Debate adjourned until Thursday, March 8, 1990 HJ-5
03/08/90 House Read second time HJ-25
03/08/90 House Unanimous consent for third reading on next
legislative day HJ-26
03/09/90 House Read third time and enrolled HJ-4
03/13/90 Ratified R 393
03/19/90 Signed By Governor
03/19/90 Effective date 03/19/90
03/19/90 Act No. 357
03/27/90 Copies available
(A357, R393, S1105)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-35, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH
CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE REQUIREMENT THAT THE AUTHORITY CHARGED
BY LAW WITH CONDUCTING AN ELECTION IN EACH COUNTY PUBLISH NOTICES OF
ELECTIONS HELD IN THE COUNTY, SO AS TO INCLUDE IN THIS REQUIREMENT
NOTIFICATION OF WHEN THE PROCESS OF EXAMINING THE ENVELOPES CONTAINING
ABSENTEE BALLOTS BEGINS; TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-70, AS AMENDED,
RELATING TO THE APPOINTMENT OF COMMISSIONERS OF ELECTION IN EACH
COUNTY, SO AS TO REQUIRE THE COMMISSIONERS TO APPOINT A CLERK FROM
AMONG MANAGERS FOR EACH POLLING PLACE IN THE COUNTY AND ONE FOR EACH
POLLING PLACE IN A PRIMARY, SPECIAL, OR MUNICIPAL ELECTION; TO AMEND
SECTION 7-13-80, RELATING TO THE APPOINTMENT OF A CLERK BY THE
MANAGERS OF ELECTION, SO AS TO DELETE THE AUTHORITY TO APPOINT A CLERK
AND ADD REFERENCES TO CLERKS; TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-810, RELATING TO
THE POWERS OF MANAGERS OF ELECTIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT CHALLENGES
MAY BE MADE AT ANY TIME BEFORE THE OPENING OF THE ENVELOPES CONTAINING
THE ABSENTEE BALLOTS INSTEAD OF WHEN THE BALLOTS ARE COUNTED; TO AMEND
SECTION 7-15-370, RELATING TO THE ITEMS REQUIRED TO BE FURNISHED EACH
PERSON QUALIFIED TO RECEIVE AN ABSENTEE BALLOT, SO AS TO REQUIRE AN
ENVELOPE MARKED "BALLOT HEREIN" INSTEAD OF AN UNMARKED
ENVELOPE BE FURNISHED EACH QUALIFIED PERSON; AND TO AMEND SECTION
7-15-420, RELATING TO THE TABULATION AND REPORTING OF ABSENTEE
BALLOTS, SO AS TO CHANGE THE TIME FOR PROCESSING THE BALLOTS FROM THE
CLOSING OF THE POLLS TO 2:00 P.M. ON ELECTION DAY, AUTHORIZE WATCHERS
TO BE PRESENT WHEN ABSENTEE BALLOT ENVELOPES ARE EXAMINED, REQUIRE ALL
RETURN-ADDRESSED ENVELOPES RECEIVED BEFORE THE CLOSING OF THE POLLS BE
EXAMINED, AND MAKE OTHER TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Notice
SECTION 1. Section 7-13-35 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by
Act 422 of 1988, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-13-35. The authority charged by law with
conducting an election shall publish two notices of general, special,
and primary elections held in the county or municipality in a
newspaper of general circulation in the county or municipality.
Included in each notice must be a reminder of the last day persons may
register to be eligible to vote in the election for which notice is
given, notification of the date, time, and location of the hearing on
ballots challenged in the election, a list of the precincts involved
in the election, and the location of the polling places in each of the
precincts, and notification that the process of examining the
return-addressed envelopes containing absentee ballots will begin at
2:00 p.m. on election day. The first notice must appear not later
than sixty days before the election and the second notice must appear
not later than two weeks after the first notice."
Commissioner to be appointed
SECTION 2. Section 7-13-70 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by
Act 422 of 1988, is further amended to read:
"Section 7-13-70. For the purpose of carrying on general or
special elections provided for in Section 7-13-10, the Governor, at
least ninety days before the election, shall appoint for each county
not less than three nor more than five commissioners of election upon
the recommendation of the Senator and at least half of the members of
the House of Representatives from the respective counties. The
Governor shall notify the State Election Commission in writing of the
appointments. The commissioners shall continue in office until their
successors are appointed and qualified. For the general election held
on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November in each
even-numbered year, the commissioners of election shall appoint three
managers of election for each polling place in the county for which
they must respectively be appointed for each five hundred electors, or
portion of each five hundred electors, registered to vote at the
polling place. The commissioners shall also appoint from among the
managers a clerk for each polling place in the county; and none of the
officers may be removed from office except for incompetence or
misconduct. For primaries, special, or municipal elections, the
authority charged by law with conducting the primaries, special, or
municipal elections shall appoint three managers of election for the
first five hundred electors registered to vote in each precinct in the
county, municipality, or other election district and one additional
manager for each five hundred electors registered to vote in the
precinct above the first five hundred electors. The commissioners
shall also appoint from among the managers a clerk for each polling
place in a primary, special, or municipal election. After their
appointment the commissioners, managers, and clerks shall take and
subscribe, before any officer authorized to administer oaths, the
following oath of office prescribed by Section 26 of Article III of
the Constitution: 'I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I am duly
qualified, according to the Constitution of this State, to exercise
the duties of the office to which I have been appointed, and that I
will, to the best of my ability, discharge the duties thereof, and
preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of this State and of the
United States. So help me God.'
It must be immediately filed in the office of the clerk of court
of common pleas of the county in which the commissioners, managers,
and clerks are appointed, or, if there is no clerk of court, in the
office of the Secretary of State. Before opening the polls, the
managers of election shall take and subscribe the oath provided for in
Section 7-13-100. Upon the completion of the canvassing of votes,
this oath must be filed with the commissioners of election along with
the ballots from that election precinct."
Organization of board
SECTION 3. Section 7-13-80 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-13-80. The commissioners, managers, and clerks
at their first meeting, respectively, shall proceed to organize as a
board by appointing one of their number chairman of the board. And
the chairman, in each instance, may administer oaths."
Managers may challenge persons
SECTION 4. Section 7-13-810 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-13-810. The managers of election shall prevent
any person from voting when they have good reason to believe the
person has already voted. They shall refuse to allow any person to
vote who is not a registered elector or who has become disqualified
for any cause to vote in such voting precinct. They may also prevent
any voter from consuming more than five minutes in voting, but no
manager shall examine, read, or handle the ballot being voted or about
to be voted by a voter or interfere in any way with the voting of any
voter otherwise than herein provided. Any elector or qualified
watcher may, and it is the duty of the managers of the election to,
challenge the vote of any person who may be known or suspected not to
be a qualified voter. However, the challenges by persons other than a
manager must be addressed to the manager and not directly to the
voter. The manager shall then present the challenge to the voter and
act in accordance with the provisions provided for in this section.
All challenges must be made before the time a voter receives a paper
ballot or enters into a voting machine and no challenge may be
considered after that time. However, challenges may be made at any
time before the opening of return-addressed envelopes and the removal
of 'Ballot Herein' envelopes from them as to absentee voters. Nothing
contained from them affects the right of any elector or qualified
watcher to challenge the vote of any person which is fraudulent or
when the challenge is based on evidence discovered after the vote is
cast."
Marking of envelopes
SECTION 5. Section 7-15-370 (3) of the 1976 Code is amended to
read:
"(3) An envelope marked 'Ballot Herein' in which all
completed ballots are to be placed;".
Commissions' responsibilities
SECTION 6. Section 7-15-420 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 7-15-420. The county election commission, municipal
election commission, county committee for each political party, or
executive committee of each municipal party in the case of primary
elections are responsible for the tabulation and reporting of absentee
ballots. At 2:00 p.m. on election day, the managers appointed
pursuant to Section 7-13-70, and in the presence of any watchers that
have been appointed pursuant to Section 7-13-860, may begin the
process of examining the return-addressed envelopes that have been
received by the county registration board making certain that each
oath has been properly signed and witnessed and includes the address
of the witness. All return-addressed envelopes received by the county
registration board before the time for closing the polls must be
examined in this manner. No ballot may be counted unless the oath is
properly signed and witnessed nor may any ballot be counted which is
received by the county registration board after time for closing of
the polls. The printed instructions required by Section 7-15-370 (2)
to be sent each absentee ballot applicant must notify him that his
vote will not be counted in either of these events. If a ballot is
not challenged, the sealed return-addressed envelope must be opened by
the managers, and the enclosed envelope marked 'Ballot Herein' removed
and placed in a locked box or boxes. After the polls close and all
return-addressed envelopes have been emptied in this manner, the
managers shall remove the ballots contained in the envelopes marked
'Ballot Herein', placing each one in the ballot box provided for the
applicable contest. When all absentee ballots have been placed in the
ballot boxes, they must be tabulated and reported as a separate
precinct in the same manner as other ballots of the county are counted
on election day. The absentee voter precinct is a countywide precinct
and a part of each election district in the county. If any ballot is
challenged, the return-addressed envelope may not be opened, but must
be put aside and the procedure set forth in Section 7-13-830 must be
utilized; but the absentee voter must be given reasonable notice of
the challenged ballot."
Time effective
SECTION 7. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
Approved the 19th day of March, 1990.
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