MEETING RECAP
After opening the meeting with a prayer and Pledge, the meeting had no guest speaker. Instead, we had a panel of members who volunteered to present the candidates for President. The original panel had six or seven volunteers who were tasked with speaking about a candidate and they would list “achievements,” pro or con without naming the candidate. Then the audience would try an identify the person being described. Due to family emergencies, etc. only three volunteers spoke at the meeting.
The meeting then turned to various items regarding the upcoming Primary (February 24th) and points of interest when reviewing various ratings of elected officials. In researching some of the most common rating websites it was pointed out that they in almost all cases use different criteria, different votes, different time frames which they review when developing their ratings.
For example –
One rating site states they “grade members of Congress on the top 50 votes over a rolling 6-year term.”
Questions:
What are the “top 50 votes”?
What about members not there for six years or those with longer records?
Lifetime Scores: Members are rated based on length of service, as well, which could incorporate different timeframes.
Questions:
Some members have over a decade of service, others much less. How are those handled and rated?
Year of scoring:
Some sites look at legislative votes through December 2023
Some stop earlier (i.e.: 2022). Not all sites are reviewing the same timeframes for voting history.
In some cases, NOT ALL BILLS have recorded a members vote.
This happens when voice votes are taken. This is where a speaker asks for a yea or nea vocal vote and then declares which side carries the vote. Therefore, no actual record of each person’s vote. Therefore, these votes cannot be reflected in a rating of a member.
Some sites will have information on some or all of the votes looked at and what their organization may have suggested versus how the member voted.
Of course, almost never do all the sites agree on an exact score but reviewing various sites can give you a better idea of your representative and how they voted or did not vote on various issues.
Then the upcoming Presidential Primary was discussed:
Members were encouraged to go to SCVOTES.org to confirm their polling location, as some have been changed for the primary. This site also provides a person’s confirmation of voting status as well as all the districts or precents they vote in. It also provides a copy of the ballot you will be presented at the polling location. It was noted that on the Republican primary ballot there are seven candidates listed. At this point only two are actually running: Ambassador Nikki Haley and former President Donald Trump.
When running for office it costs $50,000 for a candidate to register and be placed on the ballot. The campaign is considered “suspended” and the candidate will remain on the ballot unless the candidate requests to be removed from the ballot. This would allow a candidate to still continue some campaign operations and can be “revived” in later elections.
FURTHER RESEARCH:
ARTICLE 3 – BALLOTS FOR GENERAL AND SPECIAL ELECTIONS
S.C. Code 7-13-390 – Limitation on withdrawal of candidacy. After the proper officer, board of voter registration and elections or other authority has been notified of the nomination….of any candidate for office, he shall not withdraw such nomination unless upon the written request of the candidate so nominated made at least thirty days before the day of election.
S.C Code 7-13-380 – Reprinting ballots to delete name of deceased or withdrawn candidate is optional.
“After the official ballots have been printed…the death or withdrawal of a candidate whose name is printed on the official ballot does not require…the reprinting of the official ballot.
But the officer, board of voter registration and elections, or other authority having jurisdiction over the printing and distribution of the ballots concerned may
(1) cause the ballots to be reprinted and substituted in all respects for the first printed ballots if this substitution is considered feasible and advisable
(2) affix a blank label to cover the name of the deceased or withdrawn candidate on voting systems where possible or appropriate.”
UPCOMING EVENTS
Sheriff’s Citizens Academy:
The next Lancaster County Sheriff’s Citizen Academy class begins April 2nd. If interested in attending to learn more about our local law enforcement please note this is a 10-week course that meets every Tuesday from approx. 6pm – 8pm. To apply please go to LACOSO.net (Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office) and under forms you will see the application to be submitted.
Simulator Use:
The Sheriff’s office owns their simulator to help officers and the public learn what it is like to be in various shooting scenarios, SAFELY. The simulator is also open to the public if scheduled in advance with 10 – 20 interested people. The one-day course (about 2 – 3 hours) is scheduled on weekday and weekends if necessary if there are enough interested people. We had 10 people sign up. If you are interested, please contact us. This will be an on-going offering if we get enough people with interest.
MISCELLANEOUS
South Carolina Legislative Manual Booklets
State Representative Mike Neese brought current booklets of the South Carolina Legislative Manual for members. If you would like a copy, please let us know. There is lot of information about members of the State Legislature, Rules and Committees, Legislative Data as well as Information on County, State and Federal Government Departments, as well as, a brief history of the State of South Carolina. (Books are Free).
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