Personal Injury Attorney in Greenville, SC

Published: Nov. 4, 2024 at 5:27 AM PST|

GREENVILLE, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - Here are frequently asked questions about voting on Election Day in South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia.

North Carolina: 6:30 AM - 7:30 PM

South Carolina: 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM

Georgia: 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM

According to the North Carolina Board of Elections, the business times tend to be early morning and right before polls close.

No, if you are not registered at this point, you cannot vote on Tuesday. In South Carolina, you need to have been registered on or before October 14th. In Georgia, you need to have been registered on or before October 7th. In North Carolina, you need to have been registered on or before October 11th. North Carolina did allow same-day registration during early voting, but this does not apply to Election Day.

Yes, you can still vote as long as you get in line before polls close. For example, if you are in SC, if you get in line at 6:59 PM (though definitely try to get there sooner) you can still vote. If you get in line at 7:01 PM, you will be turned away.

Yes, all three states require a valid photo ID. North Carolina’s photo ID law is relatively new and only started last year. This is the first presidential election where it is required. Each state has slightly different requirements for what qualifies as a valid photo ID for voting. There are very few exceptions. For example in South Carolina, you can sign a provisional ballot if you forget your ID. Your vote will count if you bring your photo ID by your local election office before results are certified. If you are registered to vote, but unable to provide a photo ID, you can still cast a provisional ballot as long as you have an accepted reason. Your vote will not count if someone can prove to the local election board that you are lying about your identity or that you lied about having a valid reason to not have your ID.

Here’s where to find info from each state:

1 - South Carolina

2 - North Carolina

3 - Georgia

Your photo ID’s address does not need to match your voter registration’s address. In fact, some forms of accepted IDs like passports don’t normally have addresses on them. You just need to have a valid photo ID so that the poll worker can verify you are the person in the photo. They will then ask you to confirm your address and if what you say matches your registration, you are good to go.

For South Carolina: No, if you moved within the same county you are already registered in, you can still vote, but you need to go to the county elections office. There you can both update your registration and cast your.

Simple answer is yes, but it is heavily regulated and rules vary by state. In South Carolina, campaign activities and material are not allowed within 500 feet of the entrance of a polling place. In North Carolina, the restrictions are in a “buffer zone” between 25 and 50 feet from the entrance. Georgia restricts this within 150 feet of the entrance and within 25 feet of any voter standing in line. Signs outside and inside the polling location will explain the rules. If you have any issues or concerns about whether anyone is breaking these rules, speak with a poll worker.

In South Carolina and Georgia, you cannot wear anything supporting a candidate, campaign, or political party. In North Carolina, you are allowed to wear campaign attire, but you are encouraged to leave immediately after voting and get outside the buffer zone. Signs outside and inside the polling location will explain the rules. If you are unsure or have questions, call your local elections office in advance to check with them or speak with a poll worker.

No, you are prohibited by law from taking a photo or recording video while voting. You can take photos and video outside the polling location after voting.

Yes, any child under the age of 18 can accompany a parent or guardian while they are voting.

No, firearms are not allowed in any polling place.

Copyright 2024 WHNS. All rights reserved.

Many accolades have come Greenville’s way over the years as revitalization turned to prosperity.

Here’s another: tidy. This is a city that brings out public works cleanup crews immediately after every festival, parade or other events.

And so it comes as no surprise that Greenville city officials were ready when the remnants of Hurricane Helene — still a powerful tropical storm — blasted through the city, downed hundreds of trees and power lines, ripped off roofs and flooded streets.

In fact, planning for Helene began a week before the storm hit, well before anyone knew it would actually strike Greenville.

Greenville City Manager Shannon Lavrin prepared a 65-page PowerPoint presentation for city officials that offered a tick-tock assessment of everything the city did to get ready and how they managed the aftermath.

Planning began on Sept. 20 as city officials monitored Helene, then just forming in the Gulf of Mexico. First up, order fuel.

By Sept. 24, rain ahead of the storm was causing damage in various parts of the city and a microburst hit the Greenville Zoo. Buildings and animals were okay, but there were many downed trees. Downtown’s treasured treescape was damaged as well.

Greenville City Fire responded to 114 incidents in 24 hours and additional firefighters were called in to staff three water-rescue teams and one high-water vehicle.

Helene was still three days away.

Overnight on Sept. 27, the storm hit. Torrential rains, wind gusts, flash floods. The Reedy River surged through the downtown with such force it was impossible to see the 28-foot drop of Reedy River Falls.

In all, 90% of residents were without power. Two thirds of traffic lights did not work. All personnel, fire apparatus and vehicles are called back to work.

Within days, seven people would die:

Fire crews responded to 302 emergency incidents over the next 24 hours. Fire prevention staff went to senior living facilities and assisted Meals on Wheels in delivering food.

One downtown sculpture was damaged.

Police manned drones for hours to assess damage.

The city’s Engineering Services department staff divided into eight teams to install generators to power traffic signals. Ten generators were stolen.

Public Works crews worked alongside Duke Energy to speed up their restoration work, an unprecedented effort.

Debris hauling began Sept. 29.

So far, 260,000 cubic yards of debris have been collected, and the effort likely will continue until Thanksgiving, Lavrin said.

By the time it is done, the debris will equal 15 football fields, 10 feet high.

“Every city department has played a part in our recovery efforts and employees whose homes were damaged came to work every day to help our residents and businesses,” Lavrin told City Council. “We have also received tremendous support from our community and we are very grateful.”

This story was originally published November 1, 2024, 6:00 AM.

Are you looking for things to do this month or even this weekend in Greenville, SC? From concerts to shows to children’s programming, sporting events, festivals, and free events, there is almost always a great answer when you’re searching for things to do near you, at least there is when you live in South Carolina’s Upstate!

What’s happening this month in Greenville, SC?

Fall Festivals

Things to Do This Weekend in Greenville, SC

Theater, Shows, and Sporting Events

Free Things to Do This Month in Greenville, SC

Educational Things to Do and Events

Things to Do With Younger Kids

Our Top Picks: Don’t Miss These Events

Travel Highlight

Never be bored, and never miss an event your family will love! We’re highlighting some of the coolest, most unique, most interesting, and most popular events this month. But don’t forget to check out our FULL event calendar for even more amazing options. Here’s what to do this month near Greenville, SC.

For things to do this month in Spartanburg, SC, see our Monthly Event Guide to Spartanburg, SC.

Thank you to our sponsors. Sponsored events are marked as “featured.”

Educational Events This Month

There are lots of educational things to do throughout Greenville. Check out your local library, Roper Mountain Science Center, The Children’s Museum of the Upstate, and the Upcountry History Museum for continuous educational programming. More events below:

Afternoon Explorations, RMSC, Select Thursdays and Fridays in NovemberFriday Starry Nights, November 8th, 15th, and 22nd, 2024Native American Celebration, November 16th, 2024

Things to Do With Younger Kids

Looking for the best things to do with your toddlers or preschoolers?

Check out our full event calendar for tons of free events at Greenville County Library branches that offer several programs just for younger kids and babies! These events are in the morning, recurring, and occur throughout the month. If you see an event you’re interested in at a library branch, check to see if it is offered throughout the month at your local location.

Travel Highlight

Now is the time to book your holiday getaway! These homes have all the amenities to celebrate the holidays in the festive towns throughout the Southeast. Book now, they won’t last long.

Whether you are visiting as fall comes to an end, or as the area begins to prepare for the holiday season, Bryson City, NC is the perfect place to go! Only a 2-hour drive from Greenville, this quaint town has hiking, a cute downtown, and even the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad!

Greenville News

A subcommittee of South Carolina’s Board of Education voted Thursday to recommend removing seven books from the state’s school libraries and classrooms.

The final decision will be made by the full board on Nov. 5.

The committee made the removal recommendation determining the books were not “age and developmentally appropriate due to descriptions of sexual conduct” as defined by a new state regulation passed in June.

The books that will no longer be available in classrooms or school libraries in South Carolina include:

Department of Education staff developed the list for board members to review and decide on the recommendations to the full board. Board members are not required to read the book.

Robert Cathcart, policy legal advisor, said the books were reviewed by a “highly credentialed academic librarian and a staff employer.”

Though seven books were voted to be removed, the board reviewed 11 books.

The three books voted to be retained were classics and included “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, “Romeo & Juliet” by William Shakespeare and “1984” by George Orwell.

“Crank” by Ellen Hopkins was voted to be reviewed at another time that was not immediately announced.

Public comment was also allowed during the meeting but was limited to three minutes for both sides to comment on whether they agreed with the staff’s decision to remove or retain materials.

“Literature should be a source of inspiration, not a reminder of pain and suffering,” India Springs said on why she believed “Damsel” should be removed.

Springs, of Columbia, was the only resident to speak in opposition to removing the books.

'Vagueness of the regulation'

Some speakers said they were grateful that books like “To Kill a Mockingbird” or “1984” would not be removed. But they also expressed frustration with South Carolina’s new regulations on what books can be removed.

Mary Foster, programs director for Families against Book Bans, was skeptical about the list before the meeting.

Committee chairman Christain Hanley made the request that the state’s Department of Education come up with a list of books for review.

“I asked the State Department of Education if there were any books that were challenged in multiple districts that were clearly violative, or if there were any books that came up frequently in our public comments that we might deal with, and so they produced a list,” Hanley said.

Foster said “1984” and “Romeo & Juliet” were used as examples of books that have the potential to be banned under the new regulation.

“I think the problem with that is truly the vagueness of the regulation, those things could be banned based if they followed the letter of the regulation,” Foster said. “I'm never going to speak in favor of banning anything, but the way that it's written, it's so broad in general that things like that, if they followed the letter of the regulation could, in fact, be banned.

Foster contends the classics were being used to make a point that the board would not ban everything.

Under the new regulation, books must be “age and developmentally appropriate and educationally suitable and aligned with the purpose of South Carolina’s instructional program.”

But the question remains, who, or what, determines what is “age and developmentally appropriate”.

In an executive summary posted by the department, materials may not include “descriptions or visual depictions of ‘sexual conduct.’”

Foster pointed out during the public comments that the excerpts chosen by staff to qualify “Crank” as inappropriate, all depicted sexual assault and questioned why those scenes meant the book had to be removed.

“The staff recommendation is to remove this from high school libraries because it has sexual conduct. The sexual conduct in this book is not age-appropriate, but the sexual conduct in ‘1984’ and ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is,” Foster said. “Are the depictions of nonconsensual sex what makes it not age-appropriate? And if so, how can we expect young people to mature into adults who understand what consent actually is and what it isn’t if we won’t even let them read about it?”

Cathcart said that if a book had “descriptions or visual depictions of sexual conduct as outlined by South Carolina code” the book must be removed.

“That if any material in a South Carolina public school in the public school system has any excerpts that contain descriptions of sexual conduct. It violates the regulation for all agents. That's the regulation this board passed. And so as a committee, your job and obligation is to apply that,” Cathcart said.

In June, the Board of Education passed a new regulation after it said schools were discussing the “selection and use of age-appropriate, educationally suitable materials for K-12 students in public schools.”

More:Greenville County Schools to 'pause' book fairs after new rules mandated in South Carolina

The new regulation made it so that book selection in classrooms and libraries must be “age and developmentally appropriate” and “aligned with and supportive of the instructional program of the school and district.”

The Department of Education said the new regulation was to reduce confusion and provide a “clear, transparent, and uniform process.”

Thursday’s hearing was the first held by the Instructional Materials Review Committee ― a subcommittee comprised of five members who review books to determine if they meet the state’s new regulation.

The new regulation details a new process for how districts will proceed concerning requests for reconsiderations to have certain books removed, making the district’s school board of trustees responsible for the selection of instructional materials.

If a parent disagrees with the board’s decision, they can appeal to the state’s Board of Education.

South Carolina’s chapter of the ACLU said the department was “operating with shockingly little transparency as it endeavors to remove books from every classroom and library in South Carolina.

“We will continue to stand with our incredible educators and parents and students who do not think it acceptable for one person to impose their worldview on an entire state," said Josh Malkin, ACLU advocacy director, in a statement. "Attacking the right to access information will lead to a host of unintended and sadly intended consequences. We remain committed to advocating for the freedom to read."

Savannah Moss covers SC government/politics for the Greenville News. You can reach her at smoss@gannett.com or follow her on X @Savmoss.

GREENVILLE, S.C. —

Voters across the United States will head to the polls today.

If you are planning to vote in South Carolina, we have all the information you need to know to prepare for early voting or Election Day.

EARLY VOTING NUMBERS STATE-BY-STATE HERE

Election officials break down important reminders for Election Day

QUICK LINKS: Sample ballot for South Carolina voters | When and where to vote| What's on my ballot? | Voting demonstration| Meet the candidates | Greenville County road tax explanation | Understanding The Citizen Only Voting Amendment on the S.C. election ballot | Reporting problems at the polls |

For poll hours and polling locations in North Carolina, Georgia click here

North and South Carolina, Georgia officials share when presidential election results will be released

When voting in person, you will be asked to show one of the following Photo IDs at your polling place:

Yes! Tap or click here, then fill in your registration information at the South Carolina Election Commission's website.

To report fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, or misconduct within or involving a state agency, call the State Inspector General at 1-855-723-7283 (1-855-SC-Fraud), or visit the State Inspector General’s website to file a complaint online.

Visit the South Carolina Voter FAQ for more information.