South Carolina utilizes a uniform, statewide, paper-based voting system manufactured by Election Systems & Software (ES&S). The system combines touchscreen convenience with a physical paper trail to maximize security and transparency.
Core Equipment & Process
South Carolina uses specific electronic and physical hardware to manage the voting process from end to end:
- ExpressVote Ballot-Marking Devices (BMDs): Voters use a touchscreen terminal to select candidates. The machine does not store or calculate votes. Instead, it prints out a completed physical paper ballot matching the voter’s selections.
- DS300 Ballot Tabulators: After reviewing the printed paper ballot, the voter manually inserts it into a digital scanner. The DS300 scanner tabulates the votes and drops the physical ballot into a locked collection box. This equipment replaced older DS200 models to deliver faster processing speeds and improved efficiency.
- Central Tabulation: For high-volume ballot counts (such as mail-in or absentee ballots), county election offices use high-capacity DS450 and DS850 tabulators.
System Security
The South Carolina State Election Commission enforces several strict operational and digital protections:
- Air-Gapped Network: No part of the voting hardware—including the touchscreen devices, scanners, and tabulation computers—is connected to the internet, nor do they possess internal hardware capable of web connectivity.
- Physical Paper Trail: Because the system relies on physical cards, the paper ballots serve as the legal vote of record. They are regularly used by local officials for post-election audits and recounts.
- Public Testing: Local election officials conduct public logic and accuracy tests on all hardware before election day to ensure it reads votes correctly.
Accessibility Features
The universal ExpressVote system provides equal access tools directly on every machine:
- Alternative Inputs: Equipment features ports for assistive devices, including sip-and-puff switches and tactile controllers.
- Audio Assistance: Every terminal includes headphones and audio ballots for voters who are blind or visually impaired.
- Errors Mitigation: The software natively blocks “overvotes” (selecting too many candidates) and alerts voters to unintended “undervotes” (leaving a race blank) to guarantee ballot integrity.