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TOWNVILLE, S.C. (AP) -- A teenager opened fire at a South Carolina elementary school Wednesday, wounding two students and a teacher before the suspect was taken into custody, a law enforcement officer said.
Anderson County Coroner Greg Shore told the Anderson Independent Mail that authorities were responding to a death "believed to be related" to the school shooting about 1 ½ miles away.
Shore also said the students do not appear to have life-threatening injuries.
The unidentified officer who spoke to reporters on live television said all other students at the Townville Elementary School were safe following the shooting and that parents are being told to pick up their children at a nearby church.
Television images showed officers swarming the school. Some were on top of the roof while others were walking around the building. Students were driven away on buses accompanied by police officers.
The school is in a rural area near Lake Hartwell, which is located near Interstate 85 and the Georgia state line.
JEFFERON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Missouri's Republican-led Legislature took the first step Wednesday toward overriding a veto of a voter photo ID requirement as it met in a short session to also consider a measure significantly relaxing the state's gun laws.
The sweeping guns legislation would allow most adults to carry concealed weapons without needing a permit while also expanding people's right to defend themselves both in public and private places. The elections law change would require people to show a government-issued photo ID at the polls, if voters also approve a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot.
Both measures passed earlier this year with enough support for lawmakers to overturn Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon if they stick to their original votes.
The House voted 115-41 Wednesday to override the photo ID veto - easily exceeding the required two-thirds majority of 109 votes. That sends the bill to the Senate, where 23 votes are needed for an override. Republicans control 114 House seats and 24 Senate seats.
The Republican supermajorities mean lawmakers have a good shot of adding to Nixon's record as the most overridden governor in Missouri history, a distinction made possible by an era of extreme political division in the Capitol. Heading into Wednesday, lawmakers had overridden Nixon on 83 bills and budget expenditures over his two terms in office - nearly four times more overrides than the combined total for all other governors dating back to 1820 when Missouri was still a territory.
Nixon vetoed more than 20 measures this year, including ones already overridden this spring blocking pay raises for home-care workers and changing the state's school funding requirements.
During House debate Wednesday, sponsoring Republican Rep. Justin Alferman argued that the photo ID requirement would "protect our elections against fraud."
Democratic Rep. Stacey Newman countered: "This bill is voter fraud on its face."
Missouri's photo ID measure contains several exceptions. If voters swear they don't have photo IDs, they would still be allowed to vote by showing other forms of identification. The bill also requires the state to pay for photo IDs for those lacking them. And if the state budget doesn't include money for such costs, then the ID requirement would not take effect.
Even then, the requirements wouldn't take effect unless voters this November approve a proposed constitutional amendment, which is needed because the Missouri Supreme Court struck down a previous photo ID law in 2006 as unconstitutional.
In a letter explaining his veto, Nixon said this year's measure would "disproportionately" impact senior citizens, people with disabilities and others who have been lawfully voting but don't have the government-issued photo ID required under the bill.
The veto override attempt on the gun legislation must start in the Senate. On Wednesday, gun rights supporters and gun control advocates fanned out through the Missouri Capitol. The National Rifle Association set up tables in the Rotunda between the House and Senate chamber, dispatching scores of volunteers to talk to lawmakers in support of the bill. The organization distributed signs saying, "NRA. Stand and Fight."
Meanwhile, about 150 people rallied with the Missouri chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America before also lobbying lawmakers. Participants spoke about family members who were fatally shot, and chapter leader Becky Morgan said the group will oppose lawmakers who vote to enact the bill when they're up for election.
If lawmakers override the veto, Missouri would join 10 other states with laws that allow most people to carry concealed guns even if they haven't gone through the training required for permits, according to the National Rifle Association.
The measure, described by supporters as "constitutional carry," would allow people to carry hidden guns anywhere they can currently carry weapons openly, effective Jan. 1. People who choose to still get a concealed-carry permit could potentially carry their weapons into places off-limits to others and could take them to states with reciprocal agreements.
The legislation also would create a "stand-your-ground" right, meaning people don't have duty to retreat from danger any place they are legally entitled to be present. The NRA says 30 states have laws or court precedents stating people have no duty to retreat from a threat anywhere they are lawfully present. But Missouri's measure would make it the first new "stand-your-ground" state since 2011.
It also would expand the "castle doctrine" by allowing invited guests such as baby sitters to use deadly force if confronted in homes.
The Missouri Police Chiefs Association and Missouri Fraternal Order of Police have criticized the proposal, and Kansas City Mayor Sly James has said it "endangers both our community and our law enforcement."
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans have gained ground on Democrats in registering voters in three battleground states and kept their razor-thin advantage in Iowa - encouraging news for Donald Trump eight weeks before Election Day.
Republicans added hundreds of thousands of voters to the rolls since 2012 in states including Florida and Arizona, and narrowed the gap in North Carolina, according to data compiled by The Associated Press. In Iowa, Republicans prevented Democrats from surpassing them, aided by a court ruling upholding a ban on voting by ex-felons, who often register as Democrats.
As Election Day approaches, voter registration drives are in full swing.
Hillary Clinton's campaign is staging registration rallies and appealing in particular to non-whites and young people, who are more likely to vote early - if they vote at all. Trump is relying mostly on a base of white voters, urging supporters to be vigilant for voter fraud and "rigging."
"The Clinton campaign cannot come close to our output," said Sean Spicer, the Republican National Committee's chief strategist, in a campaign memorandum Monday.
The latest registration numbers aren't an assurance of new voters for Trump. Some changes reflect those who have died and been removed from the list, while others are inactive, not having voted in recent elections. In Florida, newly registered Hispanics are turning against the Republican nominee, stung by his anti-immigrant rhetoric. And Democrats historically have done well in signing up new voters in the final stretch.
But the figures, when available, offer important clues as to how each party stands.
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IOWA
Iowa is a bright spot for Trump among battleground states, with Republicans now holding an edge of 19,000 total registered voters over Democrats, 691,000 to 672,000. While independents are the most numerous at 755,000, much of the state's Republican establishment has rallied around Trump. A state court in June upheld a ban on voting for an estimated 20,000 ex-felons, many of them African-American.
The race is "about even" and "very close," said Gov. Terry Branstad in a recent AP interview. In the run-up to the state's early voting, which begins Sept. 29, the Trump campaign struggled initially in its ground game, leading Branstad to offer advice to the New York billionaire on how to get a leg up: TV advertising, appealing to the state's farmers.
Branstad's son, Eric, is running Trump's campaign in Iowa.
Some groups have been actively mobilizing, which is likely to benefit Democrats. About 20,000 college students since April have signed commitments to register and vote, according to NextGen Climate, a group seeking to combat climate change. Because Iowa offers same-day registration, those numbers won't be reflected until next month if they follow through.
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FLORIDA
Both campaigns have heavily targeted Florida, but Democrats have seen their advantage shrink to 258,000 active voters - down from 535,000 in 2012. Overall, Democrats declined to 4.69 million compared to a 4 percent rise for Republicans to 4.4 million, driven by Republican gains among white voters. Registered "no party" independents jumped 13 percent to 2.9 million.
The state imposed voter restrictions in 2011, including cuts to voter registration and early voting, that have since been softened.
But the picture remains murky.
The Republican advantage is primarily due to declines among previous Democratic voters - deaths, moves out of state and voters removed after being inactive for long periods, as well as switches to the Republican Party.
Democrats are registering more new voters than Republicans. Nearly half of all first-time voters registered since 2013 were non-white, many of them Hispanic.
Since January, of the 121,000 newly registered Hispanics, 42 percent are Democrats and 41 percent are "no party," compared to 16 percent for Republicans. It's a shift from the Jan. 1, 2013 to Aug. 1, 2016 period, when newly registered Hispanics were most likely to pick "no party." Before 2013, Hispanics had more frequently opted to register as Republican, with 39.5 percent of them Democrats, 30.5 percent "no party" and 28.4 percent Republicans.
"There's little question that the rise in Democratic registration of Hispanics in Florida is a reaction to the rise of Donald Trump," said Daniel Smith, a University of Florida professor who analyzes trends.
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NORTH CAROLINA
Democrats hold a clear registration advantage in North Carolina, but the gap has narrowed.
A Republican-controlled legislature in 2013 imposed a voter ID law and curtailed early voting and registration. But a federal appeals court in July invalidated the law as discriminatory against blacks, who are more likely to vote before Election Day.
Democrats hold a lead of about 645,000 voters. That's down from an advantage of 818,000 in 2012.
Despite a registration deficit, Republicans have been successful with voter turnout, currently holding the governorship and both Senate seats. Obama lost the state by 92,000 votes to Mitt Romney.
Election officials predict high overall turnout, spurring an appearance by Clinton in Charlotte last week.
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WEST
In the diversifying West, Democrats regained their edge in Colorado, but face challenges in Nevada and Arizona.
Boosted by rapid Latino growth, Colorado saw an increase in registered Democrats since 2012, compared to a 1.5 percent decline for Republicans. That allowed Colorado Democrats to surpass Republicans earlier this year for the first time in more than 20 years. For 2016, the state will conduct all-mail balloting, believed to slightly favor Democrats.
In Nevada, where Trump is competing hard, Democrats maintained their advantage, but Republicans have narrowed the gap.
And in Arizona, traditionally a Republican state, the picture was mixed. Republicans grew at a faster pace, but the biggest jump was among independents, to 1.4 million. Republicans hold a registration edge of about 159,000, although an influx of Hispanic voters and third-party interest have given Democrats hope.
The state has been receiving national attention with a recent hack of voter registration records.
The Homeland Security Department has suggested federal involvement to protect election integrity. But some conservatives oppose that, citing a risk of Democratic "rigging." For 2016, Arizona placed new limits on mail-in ballot collection, which Democrats are challenging in court as restrictive.
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AP writers Catherine Lucey in Charlotte, N.C., Scott Bauer in Des Moines, Iowa, and AP's Election Research and Quality Control Group contributed to this report.
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