June 14, 2016 Primary Information For Charleston, Berkeley, & Dorchester Counties General Information Purpose of This Election: The June 14th election is in preparation for the November election. If more than one person from a party has filed to run for a particular office, on June 14, voters will select which one will represent their party in the November statewide elections. These elections are particularly important because in June and November, we will be determining who will fill all SC legislature seats (statehouse and senate), one US senate seat, all seven US congressional seats, 10 solicitors, and many county seats will be filled. Who Can Vote in this Election? Any registered voter can vote in the primary of their choice. For example, Democrats can vote in the Republican primary and vice versa. You cannot, however, vote in both on the same day. The poll managers should ask all voters when they arrive, “In which party’s primary do you wish to vote today?” Hours: Polls are open from 7 am to 7 pm. If you are in the line by 7:00 pm, you are supposed to be allowed to vote. Where Do I Vote? See Sample Ballot section below Runoff Info: If a run-off is necessary, it will be held on June 28, 2016. If you voted in the primary election, you can only vote in the same party’s runoff. If you are an eligible voter that did not vote in a primary, you can vote in either party’s runoff. SC Photo ID Law in Effect! To cast your ballot, you must have ONE of the following five forms of photo ID (unexpired): 1. SC Drivers License 2. SC ID issued from the DMV 3. Military ID which also includes a VA benefits ID 4. US Passport 5. SC Voter Registration Card WITH Photo (can be obtained from a Voter Registration office free of charge) If you do not have any of the above listed 5 forms, you should still be allowed to vote using a paper ballot and signing an affidavit stating a reason why you do not have a photo ID. Please read additional info about this here. Getting Started: Get Your Sample Ballot To get your sample ballot, go to South Carolina’s official election website by clicking HERE. On this page, you will see a form where you enter your county, name, and date of birth. Click “Submit”. A Voter Information page will come up with all your voter registration information. Make sure to verify it is your correct registration by checking the address. Your Voter Information page will: Tell you if you are still listed as a valid voter in South Carolina Tell you where you are to vote (some voting locations may now be different) Tell you your voting district numbers Provide you the link to your sample ballot where you can get a listing of all your candidates Click the Blue “View Sample Ballot” bottom at the bottom of the page for YOUR SAMPLE BALLOT You will be asked which party. You can vote in either party’s primary so it is probably best to download both ballots to see the candidates on each ballot. If you are a Democrat and there are no candidates running in your Democratic primary, it would most likely be to your advantage to vote in the Republican primary, particularly in those cases when the June primaries will most likely determine your final representative. This is particularly true if you live in Berkeley or Dorchester counties. The Candidates IMPORTANT NOTE: The list below provides information on ALL primary candidates running for office in Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester counties, therefore all candidates will not appear on your sample ballot you downloaded above. Search the list below for information on candidates on your ballot which will differ depending on your county and district. The list is divided by candidates in the Democratic and Republican primaries. Remember you must vote in one or the other, not both. Democrats: Use this list for info if you choose to vote in the Democratic Primary State Senate District 42 Robert Ford is challenging his successor in an effort to regain the seat he previously held before resigning in 2013 pending ethics violations. He pled guilty to misdemeanor charges of violating rules regarding the spending of campaign funds. If elected, his focus would be a livable wage of $15 per hour, $1 million dollars to each of the five Black religious colleges, a $75 Million Dollar bond for S.C. State University, 8 more minority and 10 more female judges, and 40,000 new South Carolina jobs. Marlon Kimpson is the incumbent who succeeded Robert Ford. Although a freshman senator, he has quickly become a strong voice on issues dealing with increasing affordable housing and protection for workers. Two major incidents in his district has directed much of his attention to gun reform where he advocated strongly for the bill that required law enforcement body cameras, supported a bill to require background checks before a commercial gun sale took place and attempted to kill a bill that allowed anyone with a Georgia concealed weapon license to carry in SC as well. He successfully pushed for the removal of the Confederate flag at the State House. He supports ethics reform and disclosure of “dark money” used generally for political attack ads. He has supported incentives for businesses to hire people who have been released from prison to encourage their rehabilitation. He supports a gas tax increase to tackle the extensive deterioration of the state’s roads and bridges. Kimpson recognizes that Dist. 42 is at the center of growing commerce and believes that constituents need someone at the table who can successfully articulate issues for those who have been disenfranchised, in order to reduce the economic gap between blacks and whites. Kimpson has received endorsement of Charleston Mayor; Charleston County Democratic Chair, Brady Quirk-Garvan; Rev. Dr. Larry D. Goss, Sr.; Attorney Erika V. Harrison, North Charleston City Councilwoman Virginia Jamison; Women's Rights Advocate, Jennet Robinson Alterman; ILA Local 1422 membership, and SC AFL-CIO. Website, Facebook, State House page w/background and voting info. The winner of this primary will be the state senator for this area as there is no Republican challenger. State Senate District 116 Robert L. Brown, Incumbent since 2001 from Hollywood, State House page w/background and voting info, Eric L. Mack, minister who currently is the West Ashley representative on the Charleston County School Board. Before that he served three consecutive 4-year terms on the Charleston County Constituent School Board. See website for his areas of focus. Website Charleston County Council District 07 Patrick H. Bell, a real estate broker with work on numerous planning and land use committees, Charleston County Planning Commission Member who has a focus on revitalizing West Ashley. Website Ruth Jordan, Former Charleston county school board chair, who stated that smart growth and effective traffic planning are key issues as the communities of Ashleyville, Maryville, Lenevar and Orleans Woods face increasing redevelopment. She said this district contained more blacks as homeowners than any other area in the region and for those middle class families, constituent services such as police and fire protection and liveability are the critical issues. She hopes to become the second Black woman on the council. This is the district seat being vacated by Colleen Condon. The outcome in District 7 will help determine the balance of power on Charleston County Council, which currently has a 5-4 Democratic majority. ______________________________________________________________________________ Republicans: Use the list below for info if you choose to vote in the Republican Primary U. S. House of Representatives District 01 Jenny Horne, who represented Summerville in the House of Representatives since 2006 now wants to represent the area at the national level. She says the district needs more active representation in Washington than Sanford provides and feels that Sanford hasn’t done anything for the state of South Carolina in the eight years she has been in office. She says that she gets things done at both the state and federal level including ordering an audit of the troubled state DSS in 2012, passing legislation to require licensing of home health care providers and pushing through legislation to expand mental health treatment. She is the state legislator whose rousing speech urging the SC House members to remove the Confederate flag received national attention last year. Website, Facebook Mark Sanford, Incumbent. Former governor of SC whose political career has survived the scandal of an affair while in office and visits to see the person at taxpayer expense. He continues to have personal distractions associated with the affair. Sanford points to his record of job growth as governor and in facilitating a project to deepen the Charleston Harbor as a congressman and his efforts to block drilling of the SC coast. Wikipedia Page, Website State Senate District 34 Reese Boyd, a Conway attorney with of Davis & Boyd, LLC and former law partner of candidate Goldfinch below, chairman of the Palmetto Family Council, has served as the Vice Chairman of the Republican Party. His focus issues are to reduce the size and scope of government; fight against abortions, and fight to bear arms. Can find nothing on website about education, services that government should provide to its citizens, jobs, or health. : Website Joe Ford, general contractor from Pawley’s Island. He believes that elected officials and government bureaucrats are serving themselves and special interests and covering up wrong doing. See his positions HERE, Facebook Stephen Goldfinch, currently in SC House of Representatives, Facebook, Website, Statehouse Info Dick Withington, Horry County businessman who was arrested at the end of March and charged with inducement to file for, or withdraw from, candidacy for election.