On April 22, we and our partners at the nationwide ACLU and NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund filed a federal lawsuit over South Carolina’s failure to take action to ensure all eligible voters can vote by mail during the COVID-19 pandemic — even for our fast-approaching June 9 statewide primary elections.
We are challenging a state requirement that forces people who vote absentee to have a third-party witness signature on their ballot envelope, as well as an “excuse” requirement that fails to provide an accommodation to allow all eligible voters to vote absentee during the pandemic.
Even if voters are allowed to vote absentee “because of injury or illness” that keeps them at home, election officials have rejected the view that this currently “include[s] self-isolating due to a pandemic.”
Requiring voters to be physically present at their traditional polling places during the COVID-19 outbreak — where they will be congregating and waiting in line with others in order to vote — is contrary to the advice of public health experts. In addition, in the midst of a pandemic, the witness requirement also puts people’s health at risk.
Our lawsuit asks the court to block the state from enforcing the requirements while COVID-19 transmission is occurring; issue guidance instructing local election officials to count otherwise validly cast absentee ballots that are missing a witness signature for South Carolina’s primary and general elections in 2020; and conduct a public information campaign informing voters about the elimination of the witness and excuse requirements at this time.
Inevitably, the COVID-19 pandemic will result in voter suppression in 2020 elections unless we put preventative measures into place now. Without action from the courts, South Carolina’s June primaries will force people to choose between their health and their right to vote, a decision no one should have to make.
