York County Democrats optimistic SC will flip in 2020. ‘I just see a lot of hope.’
Across the street from Steele Street Park in Fort Mill, 5-year-old Brittany Strait and 8-year-old Janylah Potts were playing outside in their neighborhood Wednesday evening. They ran along the sidewalks, yelling and laughing.
Suddenly, they stopped and were quiet.
A blue tour bus, with a 10-foot picture of U.S. Senate candidate Jaime Harrison on the side, was pulling in to the small park’s parking lot.
“It’s Jaime Harrison!” Brittany shouted. “It’s Jaime! Jaime Harrison is coming!”
The bus was traveling as part of the South Carolina Democratic Party’s “All In For SC” tour. Members of the party went across the state this week, encouraging voters to get to the polls.
The two girls jumped up and down. Brittany, who wore a yellow dress with light pink flowers, took off into the neighborhood. “It’s Jaime Harrison!” she continued to shout. Janylah, wearing a “Girls Run This” shirt, ran after her.
A few minutes later, Brittany and Janylah reappeared and they had about a dozen adults with them. Brittany, pulling her dad’s arm, said, “See, it’s Jaime.”
“She said, ‘Daddy, Jaime Harrison is over there,’” Lareginald Strait, Brittany’s dad, told The Herald. “I said, ‘Stop playing. What do you know about Jaime Harrison?’”
She knew Harrison, who is running against U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, from his TV ads. She said she sees him every time she watches YouTube, which is almost every day.
“She’s very smart,” Strait, 36, said. “You wouldn’t think she’s 5.”
‘Never happened before’
Harrison was not in Fort Mill Wednesday. However, several other Democratic candidates on the ballot in York County were for the tour, including SC’s 5th Congressional District candidate Moe Brown. Brown, a former USC football player, is facing U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman.
“Something like this has never happened in our community before,” Strait said about political candidates stumping in his neighborhood. “It makes me feel good.”
The tour bus also made a stop Wednesday at The Mercantile in Rock Hill. About 50 people were at each event.
Some in the crowds, like Strait, had already voted. Others were waiting to go on Election Day.
They didn’t attend the events to be convinced. They went to show support.
‘Time for a change’
South Carolina has long been a Republican stronghold. The last Democratic president to win the state was Jimmy Carter in 1976, according 270toWin, a nonpartisan American political website. Graham is one of the state’s two Republican senators. Five of the state’s seven House members are Republican.
For more than 20 years, Democrat John Spratt held the 5th District until he lost to Republican Mick Mulvaney in 2011. Mulvaney went on to join President Donald Trump’s administration in 2017, which is when Norman, a Republican, took over following a special election.
Norman campaigned Monday in Rock Hill and had planned a rally Thursday in Fort Mill, but it was later canceled.
Eleven of the 13 South Carolina Senate and House members, who represent York County, are Republican. The two exceptions are S.C. Sen. Mike Fanning of Great Falls and S.C. Rep. John King of Rock Hill. Both are running for reelection.
“It’s time for a change,” Strait said. “It’s not about looking out for one class. I think it should be all classes. People don’t look at it like that, but I believe in helping people.”
‘This is not an opportunity that we always had’
Amy Jetter of Rock Hill held her 2-year-old daughter Emory’s hand as she walked across a wooden beam on the ground in The Mercantile parking lot. The campaign event Wednesday afternoon had finished and Jetter’s husband, James, chatted with candidates and other Democratic supporters.
The Jetters wanted to make the campaign event a family affair to set an example for their daughter.
“It’s important to make sure our kids understand what decisions they’re making and why they’re important,” James Jetter said. “Also as an African-American, knowing that this is not an opportunity that we always had, it’s important to be able to really embrace that and take advantage of those opportunities.”
Although more than one million South Carolinians have cast absentee ballots, James Jetter wants to vote on Election Day.
“There’s just something about the excitement of the day,” he said. “I want to support the local candidates, the people who understand our community and the importance of the rights of others. I know a lot of the candidates here represented today believe in that.”
‘I will send this to Jaime’
In the Steele Street Park parking lot, Mark Kerr and Krista Huff, who live in a neighborhood down the street, quietly waited in the corner for the event to start. Their 6-year-old daughter Rose hugged Huff’s leg. Rose held a piece of paper, and on it, she wrote “Go Jaime Harrison,” surrounded by pink hearts and red stars.
The couple found out about Wednesday’s campaign event an hour before and said their daughter wanted to make the sign.
“I just see a lot of hope with Jaime Harrison and the same hope that we had the first time Obama ran,” Huff said. “I don’t agree with Lindsey Graham or his views, especially his support of Trump. I just feel really energized by Jaime and I feel really excited about the prospects that he brings to South Carolina.”
Brown walked up to the family and introduced himself. Rose, still holding her mom’s leg, held out her sign. Brown knelt down and smiled.
“You know what?” Brown said. “I want to take a picture of this and I will send this to Jaime.”
Rose smiled behind her unicorn mask. “Can we get one with you, too?” Kerr asked.
“Absolutely,” Brown said.
The couple had already voted. They waited an hour and a half in Fort Mill Tuesday to vote absentee, but it was worth it, Huff said.
“I would say I came out here for Jaime, but I also came out here in support of all our candidates,” Huff said. “I just think it’s really exciting that South Carolina could potentially go Democrat. That’s energizing for a lot of people.”
‘Make lemonade out of whatever you got’
Irene and Doug Pointon, both 64, drove from Edgemoor, an unincorporated area in the northern part of Chester County, to support the candidates in Rock Hill Wednesday, particularly Brown. They saw him speak about four years ago in Chester County when he was working as a project manager for the Department of Commerce under then-Gov. Nikki Haley.
“He’s continued to impress,” Doug Pointon, who wore a Winthrop University face mask, told The Herald.
They already know who they’re voting for, Irene Pointon said.
“But we want to make sure the candidates know they have support,” she said.
Although the couple must vote in Chester County and will not have some of the candidates who campaigned in Rock Hill on their ballot, including S.C. Senate candidate Vickie Holt, who is running to represent York County, Irene Pointon said she believes the Democratic Party has put forth strong candidates across the state and will perform well on Nov. 3.
“I am an internal optimist, even when things don’t always go my way,” Irene Pointon said. “You make lemonade out of whatever you got.”
Where to vote absentee?
York County
York County resident can vote in person and drop off absentee by-mail ballots at the York County elections office at 6 S. Congress St. in York.
The Fort Mill extension office is open at the Fort Mill Community Center, 1011 Talbot St.
The Rock Hill office is open at the Rock Hill Operations Office, 757 S. Anderson Road.
Lancaster County
Lancaster County residents can vote in person and drop off absentee by-mail ballots at the Lancaster County elections office, 101 N. Main St. in Lancaster.
Chester County
Chester County residents can vote in person and drop off absentee by-mail ballots at the Chester County elections office, 109 Ella St. in Chester.
This story was originally published October 30, 2020 at 7:00 AM with the headline "York County Democrats optimistic SC will flip in 2020. ‘I just see a lot of hope.’."
