Berkeley County voter registration list updated, questioned

The Berkeley County Voter Registration and Elections Board meeting, held May 4 at the County Municipal Building in Moncks Corner, turned contentious when routine business ended and the public comment period began.

 

Following Director Rose Brown’s update on the voting rolls and other county and statewide election items, one resident called for the resignation of the entire board, citing lack of transparency and responsiveness to resident concerns. Others expressed support for the current board. 

 

As part of her report, Brown described the process of updating the county’s voter registration rolls. She explained, “Voter registration cards were mailed to every voter in Berkeley County prior to the 2022 General Election. Thousands of those cards were returned because voters did not update their addresses with the Voter Registration office.”

 

Brown said that her office separated the returned voter registration cards into two categories: voters with no forwarding address and voters with forwarding addresses. 

 

She explained that voters with no forwarding address on file were submitted to the State Election Commission to be removed from voter rolls and placed on inactive status; voters whose registration cards were returned with a forwarding address within Berkeley County were mailed a letter and asked to update their current address.

 

“We have poor response from those asked to update their address,” Brown said. “We are still not completed with that process because there were so many cards that were returned.” 

 

Brown noted that the city of Charleston redistricting of city council seats resulted in Daniel Island going from one represented district to two represented districts (district 1 and a portion of district 8). Polling places will not change but residents who now live in district 8 will be notified by postcard.

 

For the November 8 General Election, the in-person voter registration deadline is October 6, the online registration deadline is October 8 and mail-in registrations must be post-marked by October 10. 

 

PUBLIC COMMENTS

 

The accuracy of the voter registration list was called into question during the public comment period. One resident, who previously provided the board with a list of names she questioned as properly being on the rolls, disagreed with the county attorney’s assessment that found no evidence of illegal voting.

 

Residents also expressed frustration with the board about responsiveness to information requests, for delays in posting meeting minutes, scheduling meetings in the mornings and a lack of live streaming and video archiving of meetings.

 

Several residents said they felt as if the board was dismissive and did not take their fraud concerns seriously.

 

Questions were raised about how poll watchers and poll workers should interact during elections. Poll workers are trained and employed by Berkeley County to run polling stations while poll watchers are registered on behalf of individual candidates during primary elections and political parties during general elections. Several residents who served as poll watchers questioned whether poll workers were adequately trained. Other residents encouraged concerned citizens to sign on as poll workers.

 

Chairman Don Saturday indicated that the board would take suggestions under advisement and that he was open to changing the meeting time and providing live streaming.

 

When asked after the meeting if  he was aware of fraud in recent elections, Saturday said, “I have not seen any clear evidence of any fraud. Our voter ID system works quite well. I don’t believe that someone who isn’t registered to vote is allowed to vote… I don’t believe dead people have voted. South Carolina, I believe, has some of the best voting laws in the country and I think these elections are fairly run.”