3 things to know about using new South Carolina voting machines

South Carolina's new voting system was used for the first time Nov. 5 for voters in Greenville, Anderson and Pickens counties, among other places across the Palmetto State holding local elections.

Saturday's Democratic primary will be the first time the machines will be used in a statewide election.

Here's what you should know about the new voting system and how it works before you head to the polls, according to information from the South Carolina Election Commission. The video above also shows how to use the machines.

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1. Another step added to the voting process

Another step has now been added to the voting process with the new system. After citizens sign in as qualified voters at the polls, they will be handed a blank paper ballot card that they will then insert into a new ballot marking machine.

This is the first of two machines voters will encounter with this new system. In addition to the ballot marking machine, there's a second machine that will electronically scan those ballots to count every vote.

2. Voters will still use an electronic touchscreen to make their selections

After inserting the blank paper ballot into the first machine, voters will make their candidate selections on its electronic touchscreen.

This machine does not record votes into its memory. Instead it just serves as a way to electronically mark the paper ballots and then prints out those selections onto a voter's original blank ballot.

The system prevents voters from selecting more candidates than are allowed for a given ballot choice, which can happen on a paper ballot. It also prevents stray or improper marks that can happen on paper ballots, which can cause a voter's vote to not be counted, according to the Election Commission. The new system will also remind voters if they have missed a selection in a race or voted for fewer candidates than they're allowed to.

After a voter makes their selections, they get their original ballot back with their selections electronically printed on it and they place that ballot into a second machine, which then scans those ballots for the counting of votes.

3. There will now be a paper trail for every vote

This new system's addition of a paper ballot trail adds another layer of security.

Voters place their ballots with printed selections into the scanning machine, which tabulates the votes and directs the paper ballots into locked ballot boxes, where they will then be used to verify and audit election results.

The new system also maintains the familiarity of touchscreen voting that South Carolina voters have used to cast their ballots for the past 15 years.

More information on the new system is available on the Election Commission website.

You can connect with reporter Gabe Cavallaro on Twitter @gabe_cavallaro or facebook.com/cavallarogabe or email him at gcavallaro@greenvillenews.com.