Voters will choose among 10 candidates seeking to replace the late Lindsey Graham as the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
Voters across northern Beaufort County will head to the polls Tuesday, Aug. 11, for a special Republican primary to choose a replacement for the late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham as the party’s nominee in the Nov. 3 general election.
Graham, who was seeking reelection and had already won the Republican nomination in South Carolina’s June 9 primary, died July 21. His death left the Republican Party without a nominee for the November election, triggering the special primary process.
Ten candidates are seeking the Republican nomination: Duke Buckner, Danny Ford II, Russell Fry, Darline Graham, Mark Lynch, Mark McBride, Ralph Norman, Glenda Gail Parker, Mark Sanford and Sam Shepherd.
If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote Tuesday, the top two finishers will advance to a runoff Aug. 25. The eventual winner will become the Republican nominee in the Nov. 3 general election.
Voters who participated in the June 9 Republican primary, as well as registered voters who did not vote in either party’s June primary, are eligible to participate in Tuesday’s special Republican primary. Voters who participated in the June Democratic primary are not eligible to vote in the Republican special primary.
South Carolina does not register voters by political party, so voters do not have to be registered Republicans to participate. For this special primary, eligibility depends on whether a voter participated in one of the June primaries.
Early voting ended Friday, Aug. 7, with 3,003 Beaufort County voters casting ballots during the three-day early voting period, according to the South Carolina Election Commission.
Beaufort County saw 1,035 early voters Wednesday, Aug. 5, followed by 987 Thursday and 981 Friday. Statewide, 61,775 voters cast early ballots during the three days of early voting.
Absentee voting numbers remained much smaller. As of Monday, Aug. 10, 90 absentee ballots had been issued to Beaufort County voters and four had been returned, according to the Election Commission’s absentee statistics report. The county had also issued 188 absentee ballot applications, 135 of which had been returned by the deadline.
For voters who did not cast a ballot early or absentee, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday. Voters who are in line when polls close at 7 p.m. will still be allowed to vote.
Several polling locations north of the Broad River have been temporarily changed for the special primary, making it especially important for voters to double-check where they are supposed to vote before heading to the polls.
Seven northern Beaufort County precincts have been assigned temporary polling locations for Tuesday: Burton 1A, Burton 3A, Lady’s Island 4A, Lady’s Island 4B, St. Helena 1B, Seabrook 3 and Sheldon 1.
Temporary polling locations
Burton 1A and Burton 3A
Battery Creek High School
1 Blue Dolphin Drive, Beaufort
Lady’s Island 4A and Lady’s Island 4B
Sea Island Presbyterian Church
81 Lady’s Island Drive, Beaufort
St. Helena 1B
Saint Helena Branch Library
6355 Jonathan Francis Sr. Road, St. Helena Island
Seabrook 3
Beaufort County Public Works
120 Shanklin Road, Beaufort
Sheldon 1
Booker T. Washington Community Center
182 Booker T. Washington Circle, Yemassee
All other northern Beaufort County precincts will vote at their regular polling locations.
Beaufort
Beaufort 1, Beaufort 2 and Beaufort 3 will vote at the USCB Boundary Street Gymnasium, 1100 Boundary St., Beaufort.
Burton
Burton 1B will vote at Battery Creek High School, 1 Blue Dolphin Drive.
Burton 1C will vote at Habersham Park House, 2 Habersham Park.
Burton 1D will vote at Joseph S. Shanklin Elementary School, 121 Morrall Drive.
Burton 2A and Burton 5B will vote at Community Bible Church, 638 Parris Island Gateway.
Burton 2B and Burton 5A will vote at Shell Point Baptist Church, 871 Parris Island Gateway.
Burton 2C will vote at Love House Ministries, 423 Parris Island Gateway.
Burton 2D will vote at Garden Oaks Clubhouse, 2000 Salem Road.
Burton 3B will vote at New Hope Christian Church, 67 Parris Island Gateway.
Burton 4 will vote at Burton Wells Recreation Center, 1 Middleton Recreation Drive.
Lady’s Island
Lady’s Island 1A will vote at Grace Chapel A.M.E. Church, 10 Holly Hall Road.
Lady’s Island 1B will vote at Sea Island Presbyterian Church, 81 Lady’s Island Drive.
Lady’s Island 2A and Lady’s Island 4C will vote at Coosa Elementary School, 45 Middle Road.
Lady’s Island 2B, Lady’s Island 2C and Lady’s Island 2D will vote at David Smith Community Center, 140 Coosaw River Drive.
Lady’s Island 3A and Lady’s Island 3C will vote at Tidal Creek Fellowship, 290 Brickyard Point Road South.
Lady’s Island 3B will vote at The Retreat at Lady’s Island, 9 Sunset Blvd.
Mossy Oaks
Mossy Oaks 1A will vote at Cornerstone Christian Church, 2301 First Blvd.
Mossy Oaks 1B will vote at Beaufort Middle School, 2501 Mossy Oaks Road.
Mossy Oaks 2 will vote at Mossy Oaks Elementary School, 2510 Mossy Oaks Road.
Port Royal
Port Royal 1 and Port Royal 2 will vote at Port Royal Town Hall, 700 Paris Ave.
Seabrook and Dale
Seabrook 1 will vote at Beaufort County Public Works, 120 Shanklin Road, Beaufort.
Seabrook 2 will vote at Whale Branch Middle School, 2009 Trask Parkway, Seabrook.
Dale Lobeco will vote at James J. Davis Early Childhood Center, 354 Keans Neck Road, Seabrook.
Sheldon
Sheldon 2 will vote at Booker T. Washington Community Center, 182 Booker T. Washington Circle, Yemassee.
St. Helena Island
St. Helena 1A will vote at Saint Helena Branch Library, 6355 Jonathan Francis Sr. Road.
St. Helena 1C and St. Helena 1D will vote at Dataw Community Center, 43 Marina Drive.
St. Helena 2A will vote at Saint Helena Elementary School, 1025 Sea Island Parkway.
St. Helena 2B will vote at Gloria Potts Community Center, 130 Seaside Road.
St. Helena 2C will vote at Fripp Island Community Center, 205 Tarpon Blvd.
Voters are encouraged to verify their polling location before leaving home and should bring an acceptable photo ID with them to vote.
Voters can check their registration information and polling location through the South Carolina Election Commission’s MySCVotes voter information portal.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.