South Carolina § 7-13-190 - Special elections to fill vacancies in office.

§ 7-13-190. Special elections to fill vacancies in office.

(A) Except as otherwise provided in this code as to specific offices, whenever a vacancy occurs in office by reason of death, resignation, or removal and the vacancy in office is one which is filled by a special election to complete the term of office, this section applies.

(B)(1) In partisan elections, whether seeking nomination by political party primary or political party convention, filing by these candidates shall open for the office at twelve o'clock noon on the third Friday after the vacancy occurs for a period to close eight days later at twelve o'clock noon. If seeking nomination by petition, the petitions must be submitted not later than twelve o'clock noon, sixty days prior to the election. Verification of these petitions must be made not later than twelve o'clock noon forty-five days prior to the election. If seeking nomination by political party primary or political party convention, filing with the appropriate official is the same as provided in Section 7-11-15 and if seeking nomination by petition, filing with the appropriate official is the same as provided in Section 7-11-70.

(2) A primary must be held on the eleventh Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. A runoff primary must be held on the thirteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. The special election must be on the twentieth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. If the twentieth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs is no more than sixty days prior to the general election, the special election must be held on the same day as the general election. If the filing period closes on a state holiday, then filing must be held open through the succeeding weekday. If the date for an election falls on a state holiday, the election must be set for the next succeeding Tuesday. For purposes of this section, state holiday does not mean the general election day.

(C) If the office is not one for which there are partisan elections, then the filing must be opened at noon on the third Friday after the vacancy occurs for a period to close ten days later at noon. The filing must be made to the same entity to which the nonpartisan officeholders would normally file for office in a general election year. The election must be set for the thirteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. Both the filing date and the election date are subject to the provisions in subsection (B) of this section regarding holidays.

(D) Provided, however, if a vacancy occurs in more than one office in the same county requiring separate special elections to be held within a period of twenty-eight days under the provisions of this section, the county board of voter registration and elections or other authority responsible for the conduct of the elections shall conduct all of the elections on the same date. The special elections must be held on the latest date required for an election during the twenty-eight-day period.

HISTORY: 1986 Act No. 493, eff June 9, 1986; 1988 Act No. 363, SECTION 3, eff March 14, 1988; 1988 Act No. 380, eff March 14, 1988; 1991 Act No. 61, SECTION 1, eff May 22, 1991; 1996 Act No. 226, SECTION 4, eff February 12, 1996; 1996 Act No. 243, SECTION 1, eff March 4, 1996; 1998 Act No. 412, SECTION 4, eff June 9, 1998; 2003 Act No. 3, SECTION 2, eff upon approval (became law without the Governor's signature on January 16, 2003); 2017 Act No. 15 (H.3150), SECTION 1, eff May 4, 2017; 2017 Act No. 15 (H.3150), SECTION 2, eff January 1, 2018.

Editor's Note

2017 Act No. 15, SECTIONS 4 to 5, provide as follows:

"SECTION 4. SECTION 1 [amending (B)] takes effect upon approval by the Governor and applies to elections for which candidate filings begin on or after that date.

"SECTION 5. SECTION 2 [deleting (E)] takes effect on January 1, 2018, and applies to elections for which candidate filings begin on or after that date."