Latest local news, weather and high school sports from the Midlands

1. DOES SOUTH CAROLINA STAY IN THE RED: South Carolina has voted for the Republican presidential candidate eight straight times. All signs point toward Mitt Romney stretching that total to nine. The question may be whether Romney can eclipse the 54 percent mark John McCain received in the 2008 race and get closer to the 57 percent George W. Bush got in 2000 and 58 percent Bush received in 2004.

2. CAN PETITION CANDIDATES WIN: The court decision about financial paperwork that dumped hundreds of candidates off the ballots means the state has an unprecedented number of petition candidates in the general election. They will have an uphill climb. Petition candidates aren't affiliated with a party and don't get votes if a voter chooses the straight ticket option. Election officials said about 50 percent of voters in South Carolina voted straight ticket in both 2008 and 2010. Thirty-two of South Carolina's 46 counties have a local petition candidate, and they also are running in seven competitive state Senate races and 17 competitive House races.

3. SOMEONE NEW IN WASHINGTON: Voters in South Carolina's new 7th Congressional District will choose its first U.S. House member. Republican Horry County Council Chairman Tom Rice is taking on Democratic Coastal Carolina professor Gloria Bromell Tinubu. The new district runs from Myrtle Beach to Florence. South Carolina's other six incumbents are heavy favorites to retain their seats, and Republican Joe Wilson in the 2nd Congressional District has no opposition at all.

4. RECORD ABSENTEE VOTING: South Carolina set a record for the number of absentee votes cast in an election. As of late Monday afternoon, nearly 376,000 voters have cast absentee ballots across the state. That broke the record of 342,000 absentee votes in the 2008 election. The state has issued 403,000 absentee ballots. If all of those ballots are returned, it would mark 14 percent of the state's registered voters casting ballots before Election Day.

5. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT: South Carolina votes have just one constitutional amendment to consider, but it would be a significant change to state government. The amendment asks if the governor and lieutenant governor should be voted on the same ticket, similar to the presidential race. The change would not take effect until 2018.