Results, Reaction: Mark Sanford Returns To Congress with SC1 Victory

9:15 a.m. Update: Former Gov. Mark Sanford didn't need forgiveness to win Tuesday's special election. Which is good, because he didn't get it. 

But that doesn't mean he didn't know how to win. See how the Comeback Kid made it happen.

His opponent, Elizabeth Colbert Busch, meanwhile, was unable to take advantage of the loads of media hype and attention her campaign received. 

8:30 p.m. Update: With 71 percent of the precincts reporting, CNN and the Associated Press have projected Mark Sanford as the winner in Tuesday's special election for the First Congressional District.

7 p.m. Update: The polls are now closed in the First Congressional District race between Mark Sanford and Elizabeth Colbert Busch.

Despite higher-than-expected turnout, results shouldn't take more than a couple of hours to tabulate and report.

We will updating results as they come in above.

9:30 a.m. Update: As you can see above from the stream of reports coming in across the district, turnout is moderate so far in the First Congressional District race.

No major issues or delays have been reported, and the raindrops don't seem to be holding many folks back.

Original article: The pressure has been building each day for the six months since former Sen. Jim DeMint announced he would leave Congress to join a conservative think tank.

Now, Decision Day has finally arrived for Republican Mark Sanford, Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch and the voters in South Carolina's First Congressional District.

The polls opened at 7 a.m. Tuesday across district, the race that has garnered national attention for its push-polling seeking to connect Colbert Busch to an abortion, billboards that mock Sanford's extramarital affair while in the governor's manion, and a bevy of TV ads, endorsements and campaigning nearly every day since Dec. 6.

Here are some of the questions we hear at Patch nearly every day — and our answers:

Where do you vote and what do you need to bring?

• Berkeley County information
• Charleston County information
• Dorchester County information

Who's going to win?

According to the latest polls from left-leaning PPP, Sanford has surged from nine points back to take a small lead over Colbert Busch.

Where do they stand on the issues?

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How will the election be decided? 

The First Congressional District's sprawling geography and this race's intense distinction between gender will play huge roles in the election.

Why should Sanford be elected?

Patch readers are . Most supporters focus on his fiscal conservative values and experience.

Why should Colbert Busch be elected?

Patch readers are also telling why political newcomer Colbert Busch should be elected to Congress. Most supporters focus on her ability to work across party lines.