S.C. early voting concludes as state approaches record nearly one million ballots

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Early voting in South Carolina concluded Saturday as the state approached nearly 1 million ballots cast, putting it on track to set a new turnout record.According to the South Carolina Election Commission, turnout has far exceeded the pace seen during the previous midterm cycle. More than 50 million Americans nationwide have already cast ballots ahead of Election Day.Election Commission Executive Director Conway Belangia said early turnout reached roughly double what the state saw four years ago.“It is probably double what we saw four years ago,” Belangia said, emphasizing confidence in the state’s election security. “The voting system itself is never hooked to the internet, never hooked to a telephone line. It is run on the county level and protected on the county level as well as the state level, and so we’ve got multiple layers of protection.”Greenville County led the state in early voting with 83,212 ballots cast, followed by Charleston County with 78,759. Richland