Caskey wins GOP nod for Lexington House seat

Prosecutor Micah Caskey won the GOP nomination Tuesday for the S.C. House District 89 seat that represents the Cayce, Springdale and West Columbia areas.

Caskey beat West Columbia City Councilman Tem Miles in a runoff landslide that followed a four-candidate primary race on June 14.

“It’s a nice affirmation of all the work that we put in over the last couple of months,” Caskey said, adding he now will shift his focus to the November general election

Caskey face two candidates in the November —Democrat Peggy Butler and Constitutional candidate Robert Lampley.

All are vying to replace retiring state Rep. Kenny Bingham, R-Lexington. Bingham chaired the House Ethics Committee and a House subcommittee that oversaw K-12 spending.

Caskey, 35, grew up in Springdale before going to the University of Florida. After college, he enlisted in the Marine Corps, serving four years and deploying to Iraq twice.

Caskey also earned law and master’s in international business administration degrees from the University of South Carolina. In the middle of law school, Caskey deployed for a year to Afghanistan.

Glen Conwell, 53, said he voted for Caskey because he is a “fresh face.” Conwell also valued Caskey’s military experience.

Meredith and Biff Blocker both voted for Caskey as well.

Caskey reached out to them, Biff Blocker said, adding Caskey was standing outside of their polling place Tuesday.

Caskey said he arrived at the Quail Hollow precinct to greet voters shortly after the polls opened and was there for nearly 12 hours.

Over the course of the day, he said he drank four, 32-ounce Gatorades.

This story was originally published June 28, 2016 at 9:52 PM with the headline "Caskey wins GOP nod for Lexington House seat."