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Article published Jun 26, 2003
State Election Commission releases preliminary voting plan

AMY GEIER EDGAR
Associated Press

COLUMBIA -- The State Election Commission on Wednesday released its preliminary plan for compliance with the federal Help America Vote Act.
The federal legislation requires states to create a long-term plan for HAVA implementation. It was passed in 2002, after Florida's voting debacle in the 2000 presidential election, to replace punch-card voting systems and provide minimum election standards for states.
The state's plan, which can be updated as needed over time, calls for implementation of a statewide uniform electronic voting system, support for disabled voters, enhancements to election administration and training for voters, poll workers and election officials.
The preliminary plan is available for public review until July 25.
South Carolina already has received $6.8 million in federal funds to help with the changes and is entitled to an additional $42 million over the next three years, said Marci Andino, executive director of the State Election Commission.
The federal law requires states to provide a 5 percent match for the funds during the three years.
But the state stands to lose millions because Gov. Mark Sanford vetoed a portion of the budget that provides $700,000 for HAVA.
That money was contingent upon receiving more than $5 million in abandoned property from the demutualization of insurance companies.
In his veto letter from last week, Sanford said the HAVA appropriation is an important expenditure, but said it was "not really funded" by the General Assembly.
"Items that merit funding should be funded with real dollars, not placed on a 'wish list.' This practice creates unrealistic expectations and avoids the prioritization and hard decisions that are necessary in our current budget environment," Sanford wrote.
Andino said her agency is investigating other sources for the funding vetoed by the governor. One source is a budget proviso that includes $1 million in funds left over from state primaries.
Normally, money not spent for primaries is put in the fund and carried over for future primaries, Andino said. But the Election Commission could use that money for things like replacing punch card machines or purchasing machines for disabled voters, she said.
"It would be a shame to let millions of dollars go," Andino said.
On the Net: State Election Commission plan: www.state.sc.us/scsec/
By JIM DAVENPORT
Associated Press
COLUMBIA -- Seven months before the presidential primary in South Carolina, the state Democratic Party doesn't have the money to pay for it, raising doubts about whether the first-in-the-South primary will take place.
Joe Erwin, who took over as state party chairman last month, maintains that the Democrats can raise the estimated $450,000 in the coming months to hold the Feb. 3 primary; a $1,000-dollar-a-plate fund-raiser has been scheduled for Aug. 4.
But the cash-strapped state party, which still doesn't have a finance director, faces a tough challenge.
The most recent state filing, from April 10, showed the state party with $288.93 on hand, which does not include soft money the party doesn't have to disclose. Erwin declined to provide a copy of the party's current treasurer's report following an executive committee meeting Tuesday.
Last month, the party hosted the first Democratic presidential debate and held its annual fund-raising dinner, which eliminated a $70,000 debt and left it with more than $200,000, according to Erwin. The party chairman said Democrats have about $100,000 on hand.
"I'm not a stupid optimist," Erwin said. "I'm scared enough to know we have to work our tails off."
South Carolina, which in recent presidential years has allocated delegates through less costly caucuses, and Utah are the only states in this election cycle that rely on the state Democratic Party to finance the primaries. Presidential primaries elsewhere are state-funded, according to the Democratic National Committee.
In Utah, which uses only volunteers and paper ballots, Democrats plan to consolidate their polling places to reduce the cost to less than $50,000. Utah Democratic Chairwoman Meghan Holbrook said the party does not have the cash on hand for the primary, but there are fund-raising plans.
Erwin is hoping to hold South Carolina's primary relying solely on volunteers and the possible use of paper ballots at a cost of $450,000. But a campaign official with Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards of North Carolina, who is hoping for a momentum-building win in South Carolina, said the campaign has been told that the primary would cost $1 million.
Whatever the cost, the Democratic National Committee had said it would not step in to finance the primary despite the embarrassment of a canceled primary. The DNC wants to avoid the precedent of bailing out one state party, knowing that if it does, others would come calling. Erwin said he will not ask the DNC for help.
Adding to the state party's financial woes was the DNC's decision last week to reject a higher filing fee for presidential candidates in South Carolina. The state had sought DNC approval for a fee of $4,100 when each presidential hopeful files to run in the primary -- there are nine candidates -- but the national committee rejected that amount, saying it would be too much of a financial burden on the candidates.
Instead, each candidate will pay $2,500 to appear on the South Carolina ballot.
Even the prospect of an all-volunteer primary wouldn't be cost free.
Al Holland, a Democratic Party chairman in Lee County, said he would have to enlist at least 72 people to run the county's 24 polling places at a cost of $25 each, a thought he finds unnerving.
"If it's going to be 100 percent (volunteer), we better start getting people," said Holland, who pointed out that people are unaccustomed to working the polls for free. "It's going to be a job to get them out and get them to do it."
State counties, however, should not expect the state party to pay for volunteer poll workers, according to Erwin, who wants to avoid promising money to one county while slighting another.
Finding the volunteers, "may be a challenge, but it will get done," said Richard Johnson, a state committeeman from Aiken County.
Added Neil Diamond, a state executive committee member from Berkeley County: "I think we're going to have enough volunteers out there to man the polls."
The Democratic Party has had a rough time in South Carolina. In the November elections, the party lost all but two statewide posts, including the governor's office and the fund-raising clout that goes with it.
Other options to help close the financial gap would be dialing-for-dollars efforts, direct-mail solicitation and the creation of a "Committee of 100," in which each member would donate at least $1,000, Erwin said.
Still, state Democrats said they will have the money for the primary.
"Our state party finances are sound," said Waring Howe, a DNC member from Charleston County. "We need more money. We're confident we will get the money to run the primary."
Erwin offered his own promise.
"I guarantee we're going to die working to make it happen," he said.
Associated Press Writers Ron Fournier and Nedra Pickler in Washington contributed to this report.

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