Ballot marking and touchscreen issues in SC? Here’s what election officials say

Early voting in the 2026 midterm election is underway in Beaufort County and turnout is nearly double that of the last midterm.

But there's some confusion over ballot marking and touchscreen voting machines.

Beaufort County elections officials are pushing back on social media misinformation about ballot marking and they're advising voters on how to prevent errors when using touchscreen voting machines.

Here's what election officials are saying:

Do Beaufort County poll workers mark ballots?

• Beaufort County Elections Director Jean Felix said a viral social media post claiming poll workers writing on ballots will disqualify them is false, noting that local poll workers don't write on ballots and that even accidental marks won't void a ballot.

• While Beaufort County poll workers don't write on ballots, some do in other states. An AP article published on The Dayton (Ohio) Daily News' website refers to some states where poll workers do make notations — without invalidating the ballots.

• Some states write a "P" for provisional or an "A" for absentee, so a ballot can be quickly identified. In Illinois, a law mandates that poll workers, called election judges, must initial ballots before they get issued to voters to verify ballots were officially issued.

Issues with touchscreen voting machines

• Voters around the country have reported issues with touchscreen voting machines , claiming the candidate they selected was swapped with the other.

• The touchscreen issue usually boils down to user error or minor technical issues, according to Associated Press reporting. This issue is sometimes reported in South Carolina during high-turnout elections, and the volume of reports this year is not abnormal, according to the S.C. Election Commission.

• Voters concerned about touchscreen errors can review and correct their ballot on the review screen before printing, and should check the printed ballot before scanning it since scanned ballots can't be changed. If a printed ballot is wrong, voters can ask a poll manager for a new blank ballot.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.