The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Tuesday (August 25) that they are dispatching personnel to oversee the South Carolina’s largest city Charleston’s voting stations during the state’s Republican primary runoff for federal senate.
In a press release, the Department of Justice stated that as the Republican Senatorial primary runoff takes place in South Carolina that day, the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice is sending individuals to supervise certain polling stations in the state to “ensure transparency, ballot security, and compliance with federal law.”
Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, Harmeet K. Dhillon, expressed in the press release, “We appreciate the cooperation from South Carolina, Charleston County, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for South Carolina in helping us make this oversight effort a model of building trust.”
The runoff on Tuesday will be between incumbent U.S. Senator Darline Graham Nordone and U.S. Representative Ralph Norman, to decide who will progress as the Republican nominee for the upcoming November midterm election, competing against the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator, Annie Andrews, to fill the remainder of the term for the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the unexpected passing of Republican Senator Lindsey Graham on July 11.
The press release noted that the Department of Justice personnel overseeing voting in Charleston include four Civil Rights Division attorneys, an assistant U.S. Attorney for South Carolina, and a staff member from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for South Carolina.
According to the press release, thus far during this primary season, the Department of Justice has dispatched oversight personnel to over 200 polling stations in 7 states. This is in contrast to the 2022 midterm election primaries when the Biden administration’s Department of Justice sent voting oversight officials to 9 states.
The Department of Justice stated that this oversight action is aimed at promoting election transparency, as well as facilitating open communication between poll watchers and election observers. The Voting Section staff of the Civil Rights Division enforces a range of federal laws protecting voting rights, including the Voting Rights Act, the National Voter Registration Act, the Civil Rights Act, and a series of laws.
Voting began at 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time on the 25th and concluded at 7:00 p.m. According to South Carolina law, voters must present valid photo identification when heading to the polling stations to cast their votes.