Former Democratic nominee running for same SC seat - this time as a Republican

The last Democrat to run in a coastal S.C. congressional district is taking another shot at the seat, with a twist.

On Friday, 2016 Democratic nominee Dimitri Cherny filed to run again in the 1st District — as a Republican.

In a release, Cherny said he made the switch because "the power of gerrymandering" made running as a Democrat too difficult.

"It doesn’t matter how much you raise and spend on a campaign if voters only vote for the political party, not for the candidate,” Cherny said.

He added, "The wise South Carolina state legislators of the mid-1960’s gave the citizens of South Carolina a most excellent tool to overthrow political stagnation and corruption — open primary elections.”

Cherny will face incumbent Rep. Mark Sanford, R-Charleston, who defeated Cherny by more than 20 points two years ago, and state Rep. Katie Arrington, R-Dorchester, in the Republican primary.

Cherny is an odd choice for a Republican primary. When he was running as a Democrat, Cherny got left-wing Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders' face tattooed on his arm.

He also garnered headlines for introducing legislation to find "Planet B," a habitable planet that humanity can colonize in case an apocalyptic event ends life on Earth.

This will be Cherny's third run in the district. In 2014, he ran a write-in campaign for Congress.

Democrats in the Charleston-centered district will still have a choice between Joe Cunningham and Toby Smith, both of Charleston. Both parties' primaries will be on June 12.

This story was originally published March 30, 2018 at 12:58 PM with the headline "Former Democratic nominee running for same SC seat - this time as a Republican."