Daniel Prince
WBCU will host political forums for local contested races on June 7-8
Early voting opens today for the June primaries. You may cast your ballot early from now through Friday, June 10, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for the statewide primaries at the Union County Election Commission Office, at 1246 South Duncan Bypass. They will be open during the week for that purpose, but they will not be open during the weekend. Bring your photo ID or voter registration card with you for early voting.
You will have to choose which primary to vote in—Republican or Democrat.
The Republican ballot will feature the race for Governor, between Henry McMaster and Harrison Musselwhite; secretary of state between Keith Blandford and Mark Hammond; attorney general, between Lauren Martel and Alan Wilson; state superintendent of education, between Travis Bedson, Bryan Chapman, Kizzi Gibson, Lynda Leventis-Wells, Kathy Maness, and Ellen Weaver; commissioner of agriculture, between Bill Bledsoe, Bob Rozier, and Hugh Weathers; State House District 42, between Melinda Butler and Doug Gilliam; and three advisory questions. The first question asks whether someone should have to register with the political party of their choice when they register to vote. The second question asks if school board elections should become partisan races, with candidates running for the political party of their choice. The third question asks if SC law should be changed so that in a situation where there is more than one person responsible for damages in a lawsuit, that each person should pay damages based on that person’s actual share of fault.
The Democratic ballot will feature the races for Governor, between Carlton Boyd, Joe Cunningham, Mia S. McLeod, Calvin CJ Mack McMillan, and William H. Williams; State Superintendent of Education, between Gary L. Burgess, Lisa Ellis, and Jerry Govan; US Senate, between Catherine Fleming Bruce, Angela Geter, and Krystle Matthews; US House District 5, between Kevin Eckert and Evangeline Hundley; and Union County Supervisor, between Ben Ivey and Timika M. Wilson.
WBCU News will be holding a pair of candidate forums featuring the two local contested races. The candidates for SC House District 42, Melinda Butler and Doug Gilliam, will be on the air Tuesday, June 7, in the 9 a.m. hour. The candidates for Union County Supervisor, Ben Ivey and Timika M. Wilson, will be on the air on Wednesday, June 8, in the 9 a.m. hour. If you have questions for the candidates in these races, email them to daniel@wbcuradio.com.
The primary election day is Tuesday, June 14. On that day, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the regular precinct locations. Some precinct changes need to be noted. The two precincts in Monarch and in Buffalo have been combined. Monarch Box 1 and Monarch Box 2 are now a single precinct. Those who normally voted at Monarch Elementary or Monarch Fire Department will be voting at Bethel United Methodist Church. Buffalo Box 1 and East Buffalo precincts have also been combined, so those who used to vote at Buffalo Elementary School will be voting at the Buffalo Fire Department, which was the normal polling place for those in Buffalo Box 1. Other changes include those in Ward 1 Box 1, who will no longer vote at Foster Park Elementary School. Instead, Ward 1 Box 1 voters will vote at Lakeside Baptist Church. The West Springs precinct polling place has changed as well, moving from the Community Center to West Springs Baptist Church. In all of these cases, signs will be posted at the former polling places to inform voters of the change and the new location of the polling place.
For more information, call the Union County Voter Registration office at 429-1616.