Horry County election leaders test ballot scanners ahead of presidential primaries

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) - The South Carolina Democratic Presidential Primary is just a few weeks away, which means elections offices across the state, including the Horry County Registration and Elections Office, are knee-deep in preparations.

One of the tasks at hand for election officials is making sure ballot scanners work.

Election assistant Melinda York said there are about 70 scanners to be sent out to precincts.

“We pull the machines out, we clear the machines, we load the election, we test the actual reading of the ballot, we read the results in and we clear the votes and then seal it up for deployment so it’s ready to go out, and we do this per machine,” York explained.

York added that she also has to prepare 400 to 500 ballot marking devices.

“Regardless of whether we vote 1,000 people or we vote 100,000 people, we have to do the same amount of work,” said Sandy Martin, the director of Registration and Elections for Horry County.

Now, the Registration and Elections Office wants the public to be a part of the process too by inviting them to watch election officials test voting machines from Jan. 16 to Jan. 19.

“It just gives you a general idea of what we do before we deploy equipment to the precincts. It’s not an easy process,” Martin said.

And, the process doesn’t stop at equipment testing. It also includes coordinating voting locations and poll workers, which has been a big hurdle with the South Carolina Democratic Presidential Primary being on Saturday, Feb. 3.

“With being on Saturday, there’s a lot of locations that we couldn’t use, and with it being on Saturday, there’s a lot of people that don’t want to work on Saturdays, so you know, it’s been a challenge,” said Martin.

But Martin said she believes the county will have enough poll workers and is also expecting a good turnout.

However, despite all the work that goes into preparation, she said she is used to people being skeptical of election procedures.

“Back in 2020 there was a lot of talk of it,” Martin said. “It’s not as bad as it has been, but you know, it keeps bringing up.”

But election officials said the skepticism is all the more reason people should visit the office and learn about the preparation process.

“I would say they should come down and see the process because there’s a lot more that goes into it than people think,” York said.

Anyone interested in watching officials test voting equipment should call the Registration and Elections office at 843-915-5440 to schedule an appointment between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday.

Martin also wants voters to be aware of their voting locations, as some precincts have been combined.

CLICK HERE for more information about precincts in Horry County.

CLICK HERE for information on your voter registration and polling places.

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