Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...by WILL FOLKS***An investigation into alleged criminal wiretapping by Howie Knapp, the former executive director of the S.C. Election Commission (SCVotes.gov), has expanded to include a second former official at the agency. In addition to Knapp, agents of the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) are investigating former SCVotes deputy executive director Paige Salonich in connection with these allegations. “SLED was requested on Thursday, September 18, 2025, by the South Carolina Election Commission to investigate allegations of wiretapping involving former executive director Howard Knapp and deputy director Paige Salonich,” agency public information director Renée Wunderlich confirmed to FITSNews. At the time of his ouster, he was already staring down a separate SLED investigation into “allegations of misconduct” (.pdf). In addition to the twin SLED inquiries, alleged misconduct involving Knapp and Salonich is the focus of an internal agency investigation initiated by SCVotes’ commission chairman Dennis Shedd.