Voter Registration

 

The College of Charleston is committed to getting students registered and out to vote. If you are a South Carolina resident, you can choose whether to vote here in Charleston or to vote at home with an absentee ballot. You are legally entitled to choose where you prefer to vote—here where you go to school or back in your hometown. If you live on-campus, however, it is important that you use the official street address of the residence hall and NOT your College of Charleston box number. Since January 1, 2013 all voters will be required to show a photo ID when you go to vote. If the address on your ID differs from the one you used on the registration, be sure to take a piece of “official mail” with you showing your campus address.​

How-To Guide on Voting

The Office of the Dean of Students and many others on campus strive to make sure that young people, especially college students, are heard in elections. We want to make sure that students are registered and can vote so that local, state, and national political candidates will pay attention to college students and the issues that matter most to them. During our orientation sessions, students are encouraged to come to the Office of the Dean of Students to pick up a South Carolina voter registration form and learn about state registration rules or how to file an absentee ballot. ​
  • Voter registration for College students​

    • Students may register to vote where they reside while attending college.​
    • In order to vote, South Carolina law requires one must first register to vote at least 30 days prior to the election. To be eligible to register in South Carolina you MUST:​
      • be a United States citizen​
      • be at least eighteen years old on or before the next election​
      • be a resident of South Carolina, this county, and precinct​
      • not be under a court order declaring you mentally incompetent​
      • not be confined in any public prison resulting from a conviction of a crime​
      • have never been convicted of a felony or offense against the election laws OR if previously convicted, have served the entire sentence, including probation or parole, or have received a pardon for the conviction.​
      • To ensure your address is correct please check the Physical Addresses for College of Charleston Residence Halls and Historic Houses found on The Hub. 

  • Check that you are registered and request absentee ballot​

    You can check to be sure you are registered, register to vote, and request an Absentee Ballot online at the SC State Election Commission website: www.scvotes.org

    All you need is an SC Driver’s License or SC Photo ID.

  • Voting in South Carolina​

    Since January 1, 2013, you will be asked to show one of the following Photo IDs at your polling place:​

    • S.C. Driver's License​
    • ID Card issued by S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles​
    • S.C. Voter Registration Card with Photo​
    • Federal Military ID​
    • U.S. Passport​

    You must be registered at least 30 days prior to any election in order to vote in that election.​

    There is no length of residency requirement in South Carolina in order to register to vote. You can register at any time. Registration-by-mail applications must be postmarked at least 30 days prior to that particular election to be eligible.​

    Download South Carolina’s Voter Registration Application​

  • Not from South Carolina or want to vote absentee?​

    If you are not from South Carolina and want to register to vote or vote absentee in your home state, you can access a national online voter registration form and get information about absentee voting from links below.

  • Get Involved! CougarVotes​

    CougarVotes is a nonpartisan student organization founded in 2019 with the aim of educating and mobilinzing College of Charleston student to participating in local, regional, and national elections.​
    The primary function of CougarVotes is to host frequent voter registration drives. Members of CougarVotes are responsible for tabling at these drives in order to register as many new voters as possible. Additionally, CougarVotes distributes information regarding primary elections, the electoral process, voting procedure, absentee ballots, and political candidates in order to encourage a larger and more informed young voter population.​

    Want to get involved? Check out on CougarConnect, on Instagram at @cougarvotescofc, or email cofccougarvotes@gmail.com​​.