On the heels of the 2012 election, a team of Republican state senators joined former Attorney General Henry McMaster at Gov. Nikki Haley’s signing of the Equal Access to the Ballot Act. The Senate bill aimed to correct issues that prevented more than 200 candidates from being booted off ballots across the state. Last year, elections officials said the candidates did not properly file paperwork to join the races. “When you run for office, it’s a true sacrifice, it’s an individual sacrifice, it’s a family sacrifice, and you have to fight,” said Gov. Nikki Haley. “What we saw last election was one of the most painful things you can ever see in an election – you had 200 people wanting to fight, wanting to serve and they were denied access to the ballot. With this bill we are saying that no party or individual will ever get in the way of someone running for office. We are fighters in South Carolina and we want more fighters.”
Haley said the bill also sets into motion one recommendation of the McMaster-Medlock Ethics Reform Commission report.
“This piece of legislation is one of the most important proposals of the McMaster-Medlock Commission and something I have been proud to fight for,” said Sen. Chip Campsen. “The governor is exactly right – running for office takes a lot out of the candidate and their family, and having to fight in the court system just to stay on the ballot is completely unacceptable in a Democratic Republic. Honest, open, and free elections, that people have confidence in, is a foundation of our country and this bill helps to ensure that.”
Full Article: Gov. Haley signs ballot access measure – WCIV-TV | ABC News 4 – Charleston News, Sports, Weather.