Voting reform bill in trouble

COLUMBIA -- In order to salvage the bill intended to change the voting procedures in South Carolina, Republicans and Democrats would have to reach an agreement in the remaining few weeks of the session.

House Republicans told legislative negotiators Wednesday that they want to require state voters to bring a photo ID to the polls and drop the early-voting part of the plan.

House Speaker Pro Tem Harry Cato, R-Travelers Rest, and Rep. Alan Clemmons, R-Myrtle Beach, said the House leadership is not interested in turning Election Day into "Election Month." Their comments came during a conference committee that met to settle differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.

The legislative negotiators laid out their positions and agreed to discuss the next step with the House and Senate membership before they meet again.

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The House originally passed the bill in March 2009, during the first year of the two-year session. The Senate approved it for the first time in February.

Cato said a bloc of House legislators will vote against a bill that includes any early voting, agreeing to it up to this point only as a way to move the legislation forward and closer to passage. He and Clemmons left open the possibility that a short early voting period may pass the House.

Sen. Chip Campsen, R-Isle of Palms, said it will be difficult to pass a bill in the Senate that does not include early voting. Including the voter ID and the early voting opportunities was a way to build enough consensus for the Senate to pass the bill.

"I would say it's a pretty delicate balance," Campsen said.

Republicans argue that requiring picture IDs at the poll will stamp out voter fraud and instill confidence in the voting process. Democrats think that the GOP wants to discourage voters, particularly those who don't have photo IDs, typically the poor.

"A lot of this is very suspect," Rep. Harold Mitchell, D- Spartanburg, said after the meeting. He said there is no evidence of voter fraud in recent elections.

The other Democrat on the conference committee, Sen. Gerald Malloy of Hartsville, challenged the Republicans' assertion that the bill is intended to end voter fraud.

"I never heard of this voter ID thing until a year or two ago," Malloy said. "What's been going on for all these years that we need to correct now?"

The Senate version of the bill allows early voting beginning 15 days before an election and ending three days before the election, including at least one Saturday. The House version permits early voting from Thursday to Saturday before an election.

About 178,000 registered voters have no state photo ID card, according to estimates.

Cato said photo ID is a common requirement in modern society. He said he just had to show his driver's license to use his credit card at The Home Depot.

"We're not going to put the same value on my vote that we put on my credit?" he said.

Reach Yvonne Wenger at 803-926-7855 or ywenger@postandcourier.com.