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Date Published: February 3, 2004
Democratic Party drops oath
Voter pledge requirement removed for today’s primary
By JON FOX
Item Staff Writer
jfox@theitem.com
One day before the state Democratic presidential primary,
the South Carolina Democratic Party did an about-face and dropped a
pledge that would have required voters to affirm their allegiance to
the party before voting.
Voters would have had to sign a form
stating, “I consider myself to be a Democrat” before marking their
ballots.
That oath, a bid to keep Republican voters from
skewing the results of the state’s open primary, went out the
window, however, Monday.
Joe Erwin, state Democratic Party
chairman, said he was authorized to drop the requirement after
speaking with national party leaders.
Campaigns of Democratic
candidates were notified of the development Monday by conference
call.
The pledge had been written into party procedure since
1976 and was an effort to ensure that voters cast ballots in only
one party primary. The decision to drop the provision was a move to
ensure turnout to the polls and eliminate any mixed messages that
might have been sent to the state’s voters, Erwin
said.
“Often times political parties are concerned with the
possibility that people from opposing parties will try and distort
or skew their primary,” Jacob Butler, chairman of the department of
social sciences at Morris College, said. “This loyalty oath is a way
to scare off people who might have that notion or
inclination.”
There had been concerns the pledge would
dissuade Independents and dissatisfied Republicans from turning up
to the polls today, a development that could have damaged the
chances for John Edwards, Wesley Clark and Joe Lieberman.
All
three candidates hope to appeal to voters spanning party
divides.
“That’s the downside. It can possibly put off
Independents,” Butler said. “It is a double-edged sword.”
Of
the state’s Democrats, Independents and dissatisfied Republicans,
Erwin said, “They are welcome with open arms. ... There is now
nothing to discourage South Carolina voters from
participating.”
Jimmy Byrd, Sumter County Republican Party
chairman, said the specter of signing a pledge before drawing the
voting curtain put some voters off.
“It’s surprising,” he
said. “It’s upset a lot of people.”
Independents, he said,
might have balked at being forced into a paper Democratic
box.
On the eve of the primary, many residents were unaware
that an oath might have been required, and those who did know said
it wasn’t going to prevent them from voting.
“I think it’s
ridiculous,” said Quintero Taylor, an employee of the Child
Development Center at the Marion H. Newton Family Enrichment
Center.
A registered Democrat, he said the pledge didn’t
bother him although he disagreed with the move.
“That’s not
going to deter me from exercising my right to vote,” he
said.
David Thrash, a 46-year-old student at the University
of South Carolina Sumter, said he was a longtime Republican but
planned to vote in the Democratic primary to voice a growing feeling
of dissatisfaction.
He wasn’t fazed by the possibility of
signing on the dotted line but said the pledge would have had little
effect on those planning to vote for a candidate simply to skew
results.
“I feel like honest people will do honest things,
and dishonest people will do dishonest things,” he
said.
Contact Staff Writer Jon Fox at jfox@theitem.com or
803-774-1270.
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February 24, 2004 
