No problems with machines, weather

[jefferson_dem]

:thumbsup: so far!

Posted on Sat, Jan. 26, 2008
No problems with machines, weather
By JIM DAVENPORT
The Associated Press

South Carolina election officials reported no problems with voting machines Saturday as residents headed to Democratic primary polls a week after one county's electronic machines failed to function properly during the GOP primary.

"Everything's going smoothly," said state Election Commission spokesman Chris Whitmire.

Polls were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and state Democratic officials expected record turnout for their party.

While there was a slight drizzle in some parts of the state, no accumulation of snow was in the forecast as it was during John McCain's win here a week before.

Weather was only part of that day's problems. Some of the electronic voting machines in coastal Horry County didn't work because poll workers forgot to clear them of previous votes. In some areas, only one or two machines worked. In a dozen precincts, no machines worked when voting began, and some voters had to use backup paper ballots. At least one precinct reported having to turn voters away.

Whitmire said poll workers have been taught how to ensure everything works well Saturday.

However, in Columbia, some voters left one precinct rather than shiver in the chilly morning air after a poll manager decided to only allow five people inside the building at a time, said Dwight James, executive director of the state chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The civil rights group had monitors at polling places around the state.

The Columbia poll manager thought he was keeping order but quickly was told he couldn't keep people outside, said county election director Mike Cinnamon. "We informed him to open the doors, line them up, whatever he had to do to get the voters in," said Cinnamon, who was unsure how many voters left.

Elsewhere in the city, former President Bill Clinton and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards went into different polling places. Clinton was within sight of voting booths, thanking people for coming out, signing autographs and posing for pictures.

While South Carolina law prohibits campaigning within 200 feet of a precinct, it allows candidates and surrogates to walk inside and greet voters as long as they don't push for a particular candidate or intimidate voters, said Election Commission spokesman Chris Whitmire.

In Charleston, Burke High School was busy Saturday morning with a steady stream of voters. Within the first hour of voting, dozens had cast ballots at the predominantly black, center-city school. Many voters wore mufflers and gloves against the cold.

"I would say we're going to have a good turnout because of who the candidates are," said poll manager Barbara Holmes.

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http://www.thestate.com/presidential-politics/story/297464.html