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Columbia Area Articles

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Avoid problems at the polls / keep your contact information current!

graphic with Midlands Gives Day date, 5.5.2026 and photo of LWV members
News
It's time for Midlands Gives! 
 
Show your support for the League of Women Voters of the Columbia Area by giving on May 5, 2026 6:00 am to 11:59 pm. 
 
Blog Post

LWVCA member, Betty Gregory, shares her experience in a few step-by-step pictures on how to vote absentee in the Nov. 3 general election.  

Blog Post

Richland Library can help with voter registration and absentee voting.  The library has stamped voter registration forms at Ballentine, Northeast, Sandhills, and St.

Blog Post
Think you're ready to vote? First check your registration at VOTE411.org.
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Your voice matters
News

A special primary election will be held after the death of the Republican Party nominee for U.S. Senate, Lindsey Graham. The nominee resulting from this special primary will be a candidate on the November 3, 2026, General Election Ballot.

Voters who participated in the Republican Primary or did not vote in either party’s June primary are eligible to vote in the August 11 Special Republican Primary, while voters who participated in the June Democratic Primary are not eligible to vote. Early voting will also be available from August 5-7, 8:30 am - 5 p.m.. at county locations. Absentee applications must be submitted by July 31.

Press Mention

WLTX News19 TV (Columbia)

The South Carolina Republican Party has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to close the state's Republican primaries, arguing that only registered Republicans should be allowed to choose the party's nominees. Lynn Teague, vice president of the League of Women Voters of South Carolina, said that kind of crossover voting is uncommon and rarely changes election outcomes. She argued that closing primaries would further divide voters."Sometimes you decide that your preferred candidate is in one party, and sometimes you decide somebody from another party. This actually does happen, and you should be able to vote that way. That should not be prevented."

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SC Daily Gazette
The state Republican Party plans to challenge the state’s open primary elections in federal court, arguing the party should be able to restrict who can select its nominees. "The League of Women Voters doesn't see people voting for another party at levels high enough to move the needle," said Lynn Teague, LWVSC vice president, issues & action. "Instead, closed primaries could deter voters from participating in primaries, worsening already low turnouts. Everyone needs a voice in how they are governed."

Blog Post

The big State House story for the League in 2026 has been midterm redistricting. We have won several battles this year, but the war for fair representation will almost certainly continue. The issue will resurface in 2027, probably including redistricting not just congressional but also South Carolina House and Senate maps.

Stay tuned to mobilize for this truly central issue in protecting representative democracy. We must work together with renewed energy because these issues are certain to continue to threaten the foundations of our representative democracy.

News

The national poetry anthology Democracy's Urgent Call features poems by League members from across the country including the poem of Elizabeth Sumner Jones, LWV Columbia Area, SC.