Voter registration directors throughout The T&D Region say they’re taking to heart a report released on Tuesday identifying barriers for disabled voters at South Carolina’s polls. “Unequal access for voters with disabilities continues to plague South Carolina. This is not just an issue in a few select precincts. Voters with disabilities face barriers statewide,” said Gloria Prevost, executive director of Protection & Advocacy for People with Disabilities Inc. “The state has a responsibility to uphold the fundamental right of voting access for all citizens,” she said. Last election day, P&A and volunteers completed polling place surveys at 303 polling precincts across the state during the general election. They found widespread problems.
In Orangeburg County, P&A surveyed nine polling places and determined that six were inaccessible. The site with the most barriers was Ward 4, located on the campus of South Carolina State University.
P&A reported that accessible parking was not close to the voting entrance; there was no required curbside voting area marked with a sign; the path of travel from the parking lot to the entrance was not free of barriers; there was no ramp to gain access to the voting booths and there wasn’t an available table to accommodate voters who needed to sit or who use a wheelchair.
Full Article: Report: Disabled voters face barriers at polls across state.