Election officials work around the clock in Florence County

By: Kelly Gillespie | SCNow
Published: November 02, 2008

From TV advertisements and debates to campaign signs and billboards everywhere you turn it's all about the 2008 elections.

While once you get to the polls all it takes is a push of a button, hours of labor have gone in to reach to that point.

Behind the scenes at the Florence County Election headquarters they've been working around the clock.

There's been long hours for workers and for some like Steve Love, nights on average with three hours of sleep.

"Eighteen, nineteen hours a day. They tend to add up after a while," Steven Love, Interim Florence County Elections and Voter Registration Director, said.

Love said they've been planning for the November 4 election day since June.

"All elections you've got a deadline regardless of when you start your back is against the wall. You've got to meet the date," Love said.

So far 10,000 absentee ballots have come through Florence County; in fact Love said this election has the most registered voters Florence, the state and even the country has ever seen.

"History will be made one way or the other no matter whomever wins," Love said.

To reach that mark in history, in matter of hours all the programming and months of planning will come down to one day.

"You're just going for one thing the last lap and the checkered flag that's where we are it's just like a race," Love said.

For Steve Love and election officials across the country it's a race ending in process complete, and for the country it's a race ending with new leadership in the White House.

Love told News13 that through Sunday night they will be downloading election data into their laptops along with entering all the absentee voters in their voter registration list book.

Monday Florence County election officials will be distributing their voting equipment to all the precincts.
All 352 voting machines have been programmed.