Facts At A Glance
South Carolina Voter Information
Registration Deadline: October 8th (by mail)
Do First Time Voters Need ID?
Do All Voters Need ID?
Did You: Register To Vote?
Register To VoteRegister To Vote
Check Your Voter Status?
Check RegistrationCheck Registration
Are You A Student?
Student Voter InfoStudent Voter Info
Are You An Ex-Offender?
Complete South Carolina Voter ID Laws
Do 1st time voters need ID? Yes
Do all voters need ID? Yes
Student ID accepted? No
What forms of ID are acceptable?
Voters must provide one of the following forms of ID to vote:*
- S.C. Driver’s License
- S.C. DMV ID Card
- S.C. Voter Registration Card with photo
- Federal Military ID with photo
- U.S. Passport
*If you have a reasonable impediment to obtaining Photo ID, you may vote a provisional ballot after showing your non-photo voter registration card. A reasonable impediment is any valid reason, beyond your control, which created an obstacle to obtaining Photo ID. Some examples include:
- Religious objection to being photographed
- Disability or illness
- Work schedule
- Lack of transportation
- Lack of birth certificate
- Family responsibilities
- Election within short time frame of implementation of Photo ID law (January 1, 2013)
- Any other obstacle you find reasonable
To vote under the reasonable impediment exception:
- Present your current, non-photo registration card at the polling place
- Sign an affidavit stating why you could not obtain a Photo ID
- Cast a provisional ballot that will be counted unless the county election commission has reason to believe your affidavit is false.
If you do NOT have Photo ID and do NOT have a reasonable impediment to obtaining one, or you simply forgot to bring it with you to the polls, you may still vote a provisional ballot. However, for your vote to be counted, you must provide one of the Photo IDs to the county election commission prior to certification of the election (usually Thursday or Friday after the election).
South Carolina Student Voter Info
Students who lived in South Carolina before moving elsewhere to attend school, and who wish to establish or keep their South Carolina voting residency (i.e., at their parents’ South Carolina address), should have no problem doing so unless they have already registered to vote in another state. Students attending school in South Carolina should be able to register and vote at their school address if they meet the following requirements. In South Carolina, to establish voting residency in your college town, you need to have abandoned your prior home—that is, moved away without any intention of moving back, even if you visit occasionally—and you need to have the intent to make your college town your home, even if you do not intend to stay there after graduation.
South Carolina Ex-Offender Voter Info
HHC – Individuals convicted of a felony are ineligible to vote while incarcerated, on parole, or on probation. Voting rights are automatically restored upon completion of all supervised release. Ex-offenders should re-register to vote.
Felon Voting – Anyone convicted of a misdemeanor in South Carolina may not vote while incarcerated.
Vote restored after term of incarceration, parole, and probation.
Non Profit Vote – Individuals convicted of a felony are ineligible to vote while incarcerated, on parole, or on probation. Voting rights are automatically restored upon completion of all supervised release. Ex-offenders should re-register to vote.