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by MARK POWELL
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South Carolinians will return from their upcoming Memorial Day holiday to a new political reality: early voting.
Starting at 8:30 a.m. EDT next Tuesday (May 26, 2026), registered voters in all forty-six (46) South Carolina counties will be able to cast their ballots ahead of the Palmetto State’s upcoming partisan primary elections – which are currently scheduled for June 9, 2026.
(If you’re following the ongoing drama at the S.C. State House, lawmakers are debating whether to move partisan primary elections for the Palmetto State’s seven congressional districts to August 18, 2026 to accommodate the wishes of president Donald Trump. Primary elections for statewide offices, county seats and legislative elections will still be held on June 9, 2026).
At last count, there were 3,386,531 registered voters in the Palmetto State – and a sizable chunk of them are expected to cast their ballots prior to primary day.
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Voting has actually been underway in South Carolina since early May, when absentee ballots were first mailed out by the S.C. Election Commission (SCVotes). Those wishing to vote absentee should act fast, though, as the window is rapidly closing to apply for a ballot. State law requires these applications be received by next Friday (May 29, 2026) – although absentee ballots themselves can be returned up until the day of the election.
As for early voting in South Carolina, it runs from next Tuesday (May 26, 2026) through Friday, June 5, 2026 — excluding Saturdays and Sundays. All told, there are 126 polling locations across the state – which are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EDT. In some counties, curbside voting will also be available during the early voting window. Voters aged 65 and older or those with physical disabilities will also be permitted to vote from their car or truck in certain areas.
For a list of early voting sites, please visit SCVotes’ early voting page (or click the link below)…
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SCVOTES | EARLY VOTING INFORMATION
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Be sure to check with your local voting office about availability in your area – and remember to bring a valid photo identification (S.C. Driver’s License, S.C. DMV ID Card, S.C. Voter Registration Card w/ photo, SC Concealed Weapons Permit, Federal Military ID or US Passport) when you show up to vote.
Viewed by many as a fast and more convenient alternative to waiting in line, early voting has turned Election Day into “Election Fortnight.” And South Carolinians have enthusiastically embraced it.
Early voting made its debut during the 2022 partisan primary elections, with an estimated 100,990 voters (or 17.8% of the 565,538 voters who cast ballots) going to the polls prior to election day. In the general election that November, a whopping 561,563 early ballots were cast – or 32.7% of the 1.72 million total votes cast.
Absentee voting pushed the total percentage of people who cast ballots prior to election day to 20.8% and 36.1% in the primary and general elections, respectively.
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Despite there being no statewide offices on the ballot during the 2024 partisan primary cycle, early voting still ticked up two years ago. A total of 120,178 primary voters (or 23.7% of the 506,018 primary voters who cast ballots) went to the polls prior to election day. During the general election – which included a presidential race – a whopping 1.47 million early votes were cast, or 57.3% of the 2.57 million total ballots.
What can we expect this time?
“There’s no reason to suspect it will go down,” a county election worker told us. “It’s like fishing; you never know what you’re going to get, but you always hope for the best. We’re prepared for whatever happens.”
With most politicos expecting early voting to increase once again, candidates are stepping up their outreach – and sharpening their messaging – to early voters. This is especially true for the candidates campaigning to replace outgoing status quo governor Henry McMaster.
Recent polling shows four of the six GOP candidates – lieutenant governor Pamela Evette, first district congresswoman Nancy Mace, fifth district congressman Ralph Norman and attorney general Alan Wilson – are almost tied in a statistical dead heat. All are within striking distance of each other, and all are well within polling’s margin of error.
There are conflicting reports regarding the positioning of Lowcountry multimillionaire Rom Reddy, while state senator Josh Kimbrell remains mired at the back of the pack.
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RELATED | ROM REDDY’S FOLLY
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Two weeks before primary day, though, the frontrunner in the race remains “undecided.” Some polls suggest a whopping 25% to 30% of Republican voters haven’t made up their mind which candidate they plan on supporting.
“That’s a staggering figure this late in the race,” a national GOP pollster not connected to any campaign observed. “We could be looking at a rarity in South Carolina, because it’s the first time in a generation there’s been a block of undecideds in a governor’s race this large, this close to the primary. Saying the race is wide open doesn’t do the situation justice. Anyone who predicts a winner at this moment does so at their own peril. Because they’ve only got a 20% chance of being right.”
So, what’s necessary to break an electoral logjam this large and this late in the campaign?
“In this situation, for undecideds to break their way, the winner will need two things at the last minute: a new piece of information, plus the money to make it widely known,” another national strategist unaffiliated with any campaign told us.
The strategist went on to define “a new piece of information” thusly:
“It could be something as straightforward as an endorsement from President Trump – or it could be a new, devastating attack on a leading opponent that hasn’t been unleashed before,” the strategist said. “They need something that gets people talking – something that would motivate undecideds to vote for the last name they hear.”
A possible Trump endorsement aside, the field has one last best opportunity to blunt their rivals and step out in front. Wilson, Norman, Mace and Reddy are scheduled to take the stage at Wofford College in Spartanburg on Tuesday night for the third and final debate before the primary.
“They mostly went out of their way to avoid going after one another in debates one and two,” a longtime Palmetto political observer noted. “And look where it got them. Nowhere beyond their base of support. The gloves will come off at Wofford on Tuesday night, however. They have to, if they want to win. There’s no more time left to play nice.”
Which explains why campaigns are working so hard right now to line up early votes…
“You want to pile up as many early votes as you possibly can, as soon as you can,” a campaign staffer told us. “That way, if an opponent lands a solid blow with a punch you didn’t see coming, you’ve a cushion of votes already banked.”
Then there’s the biggie, the Great White Whale of this race: a Trump endorsement.
“If it’s going to happen—and I’m not convinced yet it will — it’ll happen right at the very end,” the strategist concluded. “Look what he did in Texas, endorsing Ken Paxton over John Cronyn on Tuesday, exactly one week before the Senate GOP primary runoff. That’s a new piece of information that everyone down there is talking about right now. If it works in the Lone Star State, it could very well work in the Palmetto State as well.”
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
J. Mark Powell is an award-winning former TV journalist, government communications veteran, and a political consultant. He is also an author and an avid Civil War enthusiast. Got a tip or a story idea for Mark? Email him at mark@fitsnews.com.
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