Voter turnout was slow in the first few hours of primary voting in South Carolina—but poll workers said they saw increased participation as the day went on. The polls are open until 7 p.m. Total voter participation is expected to be high, and the executive director of the South Carolina Republican Party said he expected there will be somewhere between 2000’s record-high 573,101 voters and 2008’s 445,499 voters. Any registered voter is allowed to vote in the primary, regardless of party affiliation. But there might be stormy clouds ahead, literally: strong thunderstorms with heavy winds and possible hail have been predicted throughout the central and northern parts of the state—and forecasters warned there could be a tornado or two mixed in there.
