RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. — Friday morning, a Richland county judge ruled that the state's voter registration deadline would be extended to October 14th.
RELATED:South Carolina extends voter registration deadline after hurricane
In response to the widespread destruction caused by Hurricane Helene, the South Carolina Democratic Party (SCDP) filed a lawsuit urging the state’s Election Commission to extend the voter registration deadline for the upcoming November 2024 election. The party is requesting that all forms of voter registration be extended to October 14, 2024.
Hurricane Helene, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane, inflicted heavy flooding and power outages across South Carolina, particularly impacting Upstate counties such as Greenville, Spartanburg, and Laurens. Many residents are still facing challenges, including damaged infrastructure and the closure of government offices responsible for voter registration.
SCDP Director Jay Parmley told WACHFOX News this is not a partisan issue.
"This was not scoring political points this is about saying our election system needs to be equal for everyone and we have thousands of South Carolinians without power and who may be displaced." said Parmley.
Republican Strategist, Dave Wilson says it's important people get the opportunity to exercise their right.
"One of the most important things people should understand is that you've got to be registered to vote to be able to vote so with everything happening with this hurricane coming through there are people still without power in this state, so there's no way for them to go online and register so this a really important step that the election commission has said we have to do." said Wilson.
SCDP Chair Christale Spain emphasized the importance of ensuring that all citizens can register and vote, regardless of their political affiliations. “Protecting the right to vote is a fundamental part of our democracy,” Spain stated, adding that the extension aims to prevent disenfranchisement during recovery efforts.
Previously, the South Carolina courts granted a similar extension in response to Hurricane Florence in 2018.
According to the state elections commission previously, this has benefitted South Carolinians.
"It gives you more time and a little more flexibility we know at the county level some county offices are not functioning in the office yet so that in person deadline of October 4th that being today if your county office isn't open you can't hit that deadline and you're not able to register in person today." said T.J. Lundeen, South Carolina elections commission.