St. Andrews Residents Head to the Polls

St. Andrews residents are heading to the polls on a rainy Saturday to vote in the Republican primary, but poll managers at most locations said turnout has been slow. 

Just after 10 a.m. rain started coming down steadily at Pine Grove Elementary School. 

Warren Koestner, poll clerk for the Walden precinct, said 12 people had voted so far. He said he thinks people will stay home if the rain continues. 

"Being realistic, the way people are, then yes. People like to be comfortable," Koestner said. "If they're committed though, they will come out." 

With The Weather Channel predicting severe storms for much of South Carolina, the threat of tornadoes could keep voters at home also.  

Micah Norman made it to Pine Grove Elementary to vote before the steady rain started. Norman, who considers himself a Republican, said he voted for Ron Paul because he was the "consistent" candidate.

"His foreign policy I happen to like, which is what most people criticize," said Norman, who also voted for Paul in the 2008 primary. "He's one of the few honest politicians left." 

St. Andrews resident Jameka Williams also voted for Ron Paul. 

"He seems more focused on the issues instead of bickering back and forth," Williams said.

Although she doesn't consider herself a Republican, Williams said she has voted in Republican primaries before. 

"I know that I live in a Republican state and if a Republican has to be in office, I want to have a hand in who it is," she said. 

Two other precincts were also located at Pine Grove Elementary School. Around 10 a.m., 17 people had voted in the Pine Grove precinct and six had voted in the Beatty Road precinct. 

A poll manager said turnout for the Pine Grove precinct was average. 

Earlier in the morning, the rain had stopped at the Harbison Recreation Center. Thomas Goldman, a Navy veteran, cast his vote for Rick Santorum. 

"He's the only conservative on the ballot," said Goldman, who supported Michele Bachmann before she dropped out of the race. 

Goldman said he doesn't care for the two frontrunners Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich. 

"Mitt Romney is not the man that people think he is. Neither is Gingrich," Goldman said. "Actually, Romney is a progressive." 

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