The covid pandemic made the 2020 election challenging in handling the voting.

In defense of criticism from Sen. Shane Massey, Chris Whitmire of the State Elections Commission said they aimed to make voting easier in the pandemic.

Whitmire wrote the Chronicle that the State Election Commission wanted to maintain voter safety and election integrity within the state laws.

Early in the pandemic, he said, the SEC fielded numerous calls and inquiries from lawmakers, election officials, poll workers and voters asking what will be done to ensure a safe and secure election process.

“The SEC is a creature of the legislature with no authority to change how elections are conducted,” Whitmire said. “The letters to the General Assembly were intended to ensure all stakeholders were aware of the specific challenges posed by the pandemic and to provide potential solutions.

“Included were several ideas that had been successfully implemented in other states. After stating the problem and potential solutions, our job was to implement any changes the General Assembly enacted to the best of our abilities.

“The response was tremendous and the outcomes extraordinary.

“Together, we had the best general election in history facing unprecedented circumstances. More voters cast ballots in the 2020 General Election than ever.

“It was the highest percentage turnout since 2008.

“Absentee by mail numbers more than tripled. Absentee in person numbers more than doubled.

“There were few issues at polling places with very low wait times. Voters were able to cast their ballots, results were reported on time despite the increase in by mail ballots, and South Carolinians continue to trust their elections.

“Despite concerns over election integrity nationally, a poll conducted in November following the election showed a large majority of South Carolinians remain confident in the integrity of the state’s elections.”

A link to the survey: https://www.scvotes.gov/survey-finds-general-election-voters-confident-south-carolina-elections .