Early Voting Opens Statewide this Week Ahead of June 23 Republican Primary Runoff

Laurens County voters can cast ballots early this week ahead of the June 23 statewide primary runoff, joining residents in all 46 South Carolina counties for a two-day early voting period.

Early voting takes place Wednesday, June 17, and Thursday, June 18, at the Laurens County Voter Registration and Elections Office, 105 Bolt Drive in Laurens. Hours run 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, according to the South Carolina Election Commission. Every county is offering the same two-day window for the runoff.

The runoff exists because several June 9 races ended without a candidate reaching a majority. Others were settled that night and will not appear again until the November 3 general election, including the U.S. Senate race, where Sen. Lindsey Graham captured the Republican nomination outright, and the Democratic contest for governor, claimed by state Rep. Jermaine Johnson.

On the Ballot

Laurens County voters will weigh in on three statewide Republican runoffs and one local race:

• Governor, Republican nomination: Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson
• Attorney General, Republican nomination: 8th Circuit Solicitor David Stumbo and state Sen. Stephen Goldfinch
• Commissioner of Agriculture, Republican nomination: Cody Simpson and Danny Ford II
• Laurens County Council, District 4: Jimmy Poole and Lonnie Wilson

In the governor’s race, Evette finished first in the primary with about 29 percent of the vote, with Wilson close behind at roughly 26 percent, neither reaching the majority needed to win the nomination. The winner advances to face Johnson in November as South Carolina prepares to elect a new governor for the first time since 2018. Gov. Henry McMaster is term-limited and cannot seek another term.

The attorney general runoff fills an open seat Wilson is leaving behind and carries a strong Lakelands connection. Stumbo is in his fourth term as the 8th Judicial Circuit’s lead prosecutor over a jurisdiction that includes Laurens County, and he kicked off his campaign last fall with an announcement at the Laurens County Museum. Goldfinch represents a coastal Senate district that includes Georgetown and Horry counties.

The agriculture commissioner runoff will also decide an open statewide seat, as longtime Commissioner Hugh Weathers steps down. Cody Simpson, a fifth-generation farmer endorsed by President Donald Trump, edged out a narrow lead over Danny Ford II, a farmer and the son of former Clemson football coach Danny Ford. The winner faces Democrat DeShawn Blanding in November.

The County Council District 4 contest is the lone local runoff. Poole and Wilson were the top two finishers in a three-way June 9 race, with Poole drawing 879 votes to Wilson’s 752, short of an outright win. The winner will fill the seat Councilman Brown Patterson currently holds. Only District 4 residents may vote in that contest.

Who Can Vote

Voters who chose a Republican ballot on June 9, along with those who sat out the primary entirely, may take part in the runoff. Voters who cast a Democratic ballot cannot vote in the Republican runoff.

Election Day and Photo ID

Voters who prefer to wait can go to the polls on Election Day, Tuesday, June 23, when precincts are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. On that day, voters must report to their assigned precinct, while during the early voting window any registered voter in the county may use the early voting center.

A valid photo ID is required to vote in either period. Accepted forms include a South Carolina driver’s license, a state-issued identification card, a U.S. passport, a federal military ID, or a South Carolina voter registration card bearing a photo. A free photo ID is available from the county elections office or the DMV for anyone who needs one.

Voters with questions about their registration, sample ballot, or assigned precinct can contact the Laurens County Voter Registration and Elections Office at 105 Bolt Drive in Laurens, or look up their information at scVOTES.gov.