Governor Proclaims September ‘Voter Registration Month’
Contact: Hannah Majewski, (803) 734-9070
Date: August 30, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Proclamation in PDF Format
GOVERNOR PROCLAIMS SEPTEMBER ‘VOTER REGISTRATION MONTH’
Columbia, SC: Governor Mark Sanford has issued a proclamation declaring September as ‘Voter Registration Month’ and encourages all eligible South Carolinians to register and vote.
Currently, there are over 2 million people in South Carolina who are registered to vote and over 830,000 eligible South Carolinians who have not yet registered. Based on statistics from the 2000 Presidential Election, 72.5% of the voting age population (18 years old and older) was registered to vote; 64% of those registered voters voted; and 46% of the voting age population voted. Although South Carolina ranks 42nd nationally in voter registration, our state was 31st in the percentage of turnout of registered voters in the 2000 General Election. In that same election, South Carolina ranked 46th in turnout for voting age population. "We've said from day one that one of the keys to changing the status quo in Columbia is getting more folks involved in the political process," said Gov. Sanford. "Clearly, getting more people out to vote is the first step in raising that level of involvement - something I've always felt ultimately leads to a more responsive, accountable and efficient government. The more voice the taxpayer has in the process, the more likely government is to keep a closer eye on their bottom line."
Registering to vote is an easy process. Voter registration applications are available at the county voter registration offices, Department of Motor Vehicles, and on the State Election Commission’s website at www.state.sc.us/scsec. In order to register to vote, a person must:
● be at least 18 years old by the time of the general election
● be a resident of the county and in the polling precinct in which the elector offers to vote
A person is disqualified from being registered if he:
● is mentally incompetent as adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction;
● is serving a term of imprisonment resulting from a conviction of a crime; or
● is convicted of a felony or offenses against the election laws, unless disqualification has been removed by service of the sentence, including probation and parole time unless sooner pardoned.
Voters must be registered at least 30 days prior to the election in order to vote. The last day to register to vote in the November 2, 2004, General Election is Saturday, October 2, 2004.