Misleading video allegedly shows UK polling station not allowing people to vote on their own

Demand:

The video shows a poll in South Carolina in which people were not allowed to vote on their own.

Rating:

The night before Election Day 2024 video A man claiming to have witnessed suspicious activity at a South Carolina polling place has gone viral on social media.

In the video, the man claims to have seen people drive up to the car and vote—that is, he said he saw election workers walk up to the car with the voting machine and appear to operate the device on behalf of voters:

I just walked past one of the places where you vote, where I live, and you didn’t show up to vote. You drive up in your car, they bring the car to your car. They push the buttons for you. There were no Republicans there. They were all Democrats. What’s happening in America? What the hell is going on in our country right now with our elections?

It was unclear how or on what evidence the narrator came to believe that the people involved “were all Democrats.” The camera in the video remained pointed at him (it did not capture the alleged activity at the station) because, he said, “there was too much traffic.”

However, as the video gained popularity on X, the claim morphed into statement that “a polling place in South Carolina” was “not allowing (Americans) to cast their own ballots”:

There was no evidence to support or refute the narrator’s story. The video does not identify a South Carolina polling location or provide any details that might help determine whether what he claimed actually happened.

However, the activities he described are consistent with South Carolina voting protocols for voters with disabilities or the elderly. As stated on the South Carolina Board of Elections website, people with accessibility issues can vote by car (emphasis added):

Voters who are unable to get to a polling place or stand in line to vote because of a disability or are 65 years of age or older can vote in their vehicle. A handicap parking sign is not required for curbside voting. Poll managers monitor the curbside voting area at at least 15-minute intervals. Only the voter may be in the vehicle during voting, unless the voter has the right to assistance. The driver and other occupants of the vehicle are not eligible to vote at the curb unless they individually meet the required requirements.

In addition, some people have the right assistance in operation real voting machines (emphasis added):

Voters with disabilities and voters who are blind or cannot read or write can receive assistance to vote.. If you need assistance, you must inform the survey manager. You may choose anyone to help you vote, except your employer, your employer’s agent, or an officer or agent of your union. Poll officials also have printed instructions for voters who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Overall, there is no evidence that South Carolina officials are preventing people from voting on their own, and the actions described in the video are consistent with state regulations governing accessible voting.

Thus, it is incorrect to present this video as evidence that the South Carolina poll is preventing people from casting their own votes.

Sources:

“Voters with Disabilities.” SC Votes – South Carolina Board of Elections, accessed November 5, 2024.