Early voting in two State House special election primary races began Monday, Oct. 6. In Lexington County, voters will decide which candidate gets an opportunity to take over the seat formerly held by Republican RJ May, who resigned from his role before he pleaded guilty to distributing child sexual abuse material.
House District 88 represents parts of South Congaree, Gaston and the town of Lexington. Potential voters have the opportunity to participate in early voting until 5 p.m. Oct. 17.
Polls will open each weekday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Lexington County Voter Registration Office on Main Street. And eligible early voters have the option to vote inside the building or through a drive-by station.
The period paves the way for the primary election set for Oct. 21 and special election Dec. 23.
Palmetto State residents represented by the seat had to register to vote by Sept. 21 to participate in the primary. As of 12 p.m. Friday, only 130 eligible voters in the district had visited the polling site. That's 130 out of 24,451 eligible voters in the district, according to staff at the voter registration office.
Poll workers said primary elections on off years tend to gain less traction than years in which people vote for a presidential or gubernatorial candidate. And for special elections, it can be a challenge for residents to even know of their existence.
For motorcycle-riding Ernest Tinsley, the decision to vote early was easy. It came down to two factors: a flyer and an appointment.
He said he had shown up to vote for the lone candidate who mailed him a flyer. Tinsley had previously cast a vote for RJ May but was unaware of the early voting period that would help residents choose May's successor until the piece of political mail arrived.
He said the dates and times for the process seemed odd, especially the date of the special election, which is the day before Christmas Eve.
"I'd hope that they get more people to come out," he said. "What's kind of odd is the election on December 23. They'll be lucky to get ten people here.
Sporting a camouflage-patterned "Trump 2024" hat, Tinsley rode off to his nearby doctor appointment: the second pull factor.
"I figured I'd just do it all at the same time," he said.
Another Lexington resident, Marianne Brown, said she was unaware of the entire special election process despite passing the signs on her way to the Lizard's Thicket next door.
If necessary, a runoff election will be held Nov. 4.
The four Republican candidates are: Brain Duncan, Lorelei Graye, John Lastinger and Darren Rogers Sr.
Those who want to vote in December's special election must register to vote by Nov. 23. The GOP candidate who wins the primary election will go on to face Joseph "Chuck" Hightower, the lone Democrat on the ballot.
State House District 21 and Senate District 12 can also vote in their primary and special elections on the same dates.
