COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - The Senate has approved asking voters whether the commander of South Carolina’s Army and Air National Guard should be appointed.
Senators voted 39-0 on Tuesday to put the constitutional question on November’s ballot. Under the proposed amendment, the governor would appoint the adjutant general beginning in January 2019.
South Carolina is the only state in the nation where voters choose their top military officer in a general election.
The measure requires another vote in the Senate. So does an accompanying bill that sets the qualifications for the position, should voters approve the referendum.
The House approved both measures last year.
The adjutant general oversees the state’s 11,000-member Military Department, which includes the Army National Guard, Air National Guard, State Guard and the state’s Emergency Management Division.
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