South Carolina S 113: Single Party Primary

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 113 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 11, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 113

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING 
SECTION 7-5-110, RELATING TO THE REQUIREMENT THAT PERSONS MUST REGISTER IN 
ORDER TO VOTE, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A PERSON MAY NOT VOTE IN A PARTISAN 
PRIMARY ELECTION OR A PARTISAN ADVISORY REFERENDUM UNLESS REGISTERED AS A 
MEMBER OF THAT POLITICAL PARTY; BY ADDING SECTION 7-5-115 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT 
ONLY AN ELECTOR REGISTERED AS A MEMBER OF A CERTIFIED POLITICAL PARTY MAY VOTE 
IN A PARTISAN PRIMARY ELECTION OR A PARTISAN ADVISORY REFERENDUM, AND TO 
PROVIDE GUIDELINES; BY AMENDING SECTION 7-5-170, RELATING TO APPLICATIONS FOR 
VOTER REGISTRATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE SELECTION OF A POLITICAL PARTY ON 
A VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATION; BY AMENDING SECTION 7-9-20, RELATING TO 
QUALIFICATIONS FOR PARTY MEMBERSHIP AND VOTING IN PRIMARY ELECTION, SO AS TO 
PROVIDE CRITERIA FOR MEMBERSHIP IN A CERTIFIED POLITICAL PARTY; AND TO PROVIDE 
EFFECTIVE DATES.

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Section 7-5-110 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 Section 
7-5-110. (A) No A person 
shall be allowed tomay not 
vote at any in a partisan 
primary election or a partisan advisory referendum 
unless he shall beis 
registered as herein a member 
of that political party as required by the 
provisions of this chapter.

 (B) The State Election Commission shall 
assist the county boards charged by law with registering electors with 
capturing the data and maintaining a list of all electors registered by party 
affiliation. To expedite the registration of electors, the county boards shall 
allow electors to register by party, if they wish, at all partisan primary 
elections conducted before June 1, 2028.

 (C) After the first primary is conducted 
under the provisions of this section, the entity charged by law with 
registering qualified electors shall contact the qualified electors of that 
county, by whatever method it determines to be appropriate, informing them of 
partisan primary voting procedures as provided in this section.

 (D) The State Election Commission shall 
provide a format for absentee voting registration to comply with the provisions 
of this section.

SECTION 2. Chapter 5, Title 7 of the S.C. Code is amended by 
adding:

 Section 7-5-115. (A) Only an elector registered as a 
member of a certified political party may vote in a partisan primary election 
or partisan advisory referendum of the certified political party with which 
that elector is registered, unless that political party has taken action to 
open its partisan primary election or partisan advisory referendum to 
independent electors unaffiliated with a certified political party and has 
advised the State Election Commission, in writing, not more than one hundred 
eighty days and not less than sixty days in advance of the partisan primary 
election or partisan advisory referendum of that action. In no event may an 
elector registered as a member of a certified political party vote in the 
partisan primary election or partisan advisory referendum of a certified 
political party with which that elector is not registered.

 (B) The 
State Election Commission shall assist the county entities charged by law with 
registering electors with creating and maintaining a list of all electors 
registered by party affiliation. The State Election Commission shall indicate 
in the state voter file what selection an elector makes. To expedite the 
registration of electors, the county boards of voter registration and elections 
shall allow electors to register by party, if they wish, at all partisan 
primary elections conducted before June 1, 2028, by having an elector sign the 
following statement before an election official overseeing the conduct of the 
partisan primary election:

 "I do solemnly 
swear (or affirm) that I am a resident of South Carolina and a registered voter 
in this precinct. I further swear (or affirm) that I hereby choose to: (a) 
register as a member of a certified political party, specifically the 
________________ Party; or (b) register as an independent voter, unaffiliated 
with a certified political party."

 The form to be signed 
by the elector may specifically list all of the certified political parties 
from which the elector may choose and must contain the option for the elector 
to register as an independent voter unaffiliated with a certified political party. 
In an instance where an elector fails, for whatever reason, to select 
membership in one of the certified political parties, that elector must be 
deemed to have chosen to be registered as an independent voter unaffiliated 
with a certified political