Board of Elections and Voter Registration members unanimously voted to accept Miller's resignation, ending her tenure a year after her controversial hiring.

Board members declined to discuss Miller's departure or say why her resignation was readily accepted without dissent.

"The board and the director agreed it would be for the best interest that she resign," said board Chairman Dan Martin. He said there was "no specific instance" to point to for why she fell out of favor but "a collection of things. It's more than just the election."

A nationwide search for a successor will begin immediately, Martin said. Other board members could not be reached or declined to comment, saying the issue was a personnel matter with privacy considerations.

Since taking over at the elections headquarters, Miller had been a controversial figure. She was hired late last year by a Republican-dominated board, which chose her even though she had no experience in running an elections office.

Some names on her resume reference list came from high-ranking and influential state Republicans, including House Speaker David Wilkins of Greenville, Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, House Ways and Means Chairman Bobby Harrell and 1st District U.S. Rep. Henry Brown. The latter three are from Charleston.

Miller told critics she was qualified to run the office based on her management skills and experience as a journalist and that she gained experience quickly in the last year, working more than a dozen state and local elections.

Miller's exit came at the end of Wednesday's regular election board meeting, where the eight board members had talked extensively about ways to correct some of the voting problems that arose Nov. 2.

The board discussed sponsoring several open forums inviting the public to give input on how to make voting easier. Miller was supposed to help coordinate those sessions around the county.

After the open session of the meeting ended, the eight board members went into an executive session. About an hour later, they asked Miller, who served at the will of the board, to join them. Five minutes later, she walked out of the meeting, did a quick walk-through of the county election warehouse and headed toward her office behind a security door. She could not be reached for comment.

Miller's resignation takes effect Dec. 31. She will be on paid leave until then. As director, she earned about $60,000 a year, Martin said.

Her departure comes as Charleston County voters go to the polls for the third time during the month of November, this time on Tuesday to settle a Republican Party runoff election between Jerome Heyward and Joey Douan for the County Council District 7 nomination.

"The election will go off as planned," Martin said. Board member Charles Shine will oversee day-to-day operations until a successor is named.

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