South Carolina Voter Registration Deadline Extended After Hurricane Helene
A trial judge in South Carolina extended the state’s voter registration to Oct. 14 as a result of a lawsuit filed by the South Carolina Democratic Party due to Hurricane Helene.
The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 3, asked the court to extend the state’s voter registration deadline for the upcoming general election, in response to the “damage and chaos” caused by Hurricane Helene, according to a statement.
Though South Carolina’s in-person voter registration deadline is Oct. 4 — with the online deadline on Oct. 6 and the mail-in deadline on Oct. 7— the lawsuit asked a district court judge to extend all deadlines to Oct. 14. “Our goal is simple: to ensure that every citizen in South Carolina has the opportunity to register and exercise their right to vote, regardless of their politics, in the face of challenges caused by Hurricane Helene,” South Carolina Democratic Party Chair Christale Spain said in a statement.
The lawsuit mirrored one filed in 2018, when Hurricane Florence devastated South Carolina and North Carolina in mid-September. According to South Carolina Emergency Management, Hurricane Florence caused $607 million in damage, affected more than 11,000 homes and temporarily displaced 455,000 people.
It’s too soon to tell the extent of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene in South Carolina, but many people in the state still don’t have power and internet access. The lawsuit said that numerous government offices — including ones responsible for voter registration — are still closed because of Helene’s impact.
As communities in North and South Carolina reel from the destruction caused by Hurricane Helene, election officials and voting rights advocates are scrambling to ensure those affected by the damage will still be able to vote.
“I’ve been overwhelmed, but not surprised, by the offers of help from county boards of elections in parts of the state not affected by the storm to help their colleagues in western North Carolina,” Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, said in a press conference last week. “And I know that support will continue.”