Letter to the Editor: It's time to reform our elections

I think it is safe to say that the 2020 elections in November were a massive success in South Carolina. We saw a 72% turnout in the state where almost 2.5 million people cast ballots in the 2020 presidential election. With the redrawing of congressional and state districts coming up, I feel it is a good time to discuss some ideas that will make our elections even better in the future:

1) Provide more funding to the S.C. Elections Commission and county election offices: More funding will help train more poll workers and ensure that all precincts are open and running smoothly on Election Day.

2) Continue the popular early voting: Election Day is a work day for a lot of people, so why wouldn't we make it easier for people to vote? There wasn't any evidence of fraud, so let's continue with what we did last year.

3) Expand Voter IDs: Everyone needs to show a form of ID to vote, and I feel that we can expand what counts as acceptable forms of IDs. In addition to a driver's license, military ID and U.S. Passport, a concealed carry permit can be used as a form of ID. I believe that student IDs should be able to be used as well. Other states do it, so why not South Carolina?

4) Automatic voter registration: When you turn 18, you should automatically be registered to vote. It cuts down on the confusion many young people have about voting and will encourage more young people to vote.

5) End straight-ticket voting: Blind adherence to voting for a single political party causes people to miss out on voting for important, nonpartisan elections that affect them as well.

KEVIN ECKERT

Sumter