Columbia election notes: Could Moe’s return change the dynamics of the mayor’s race?

For more than six months, the Columbia mayoral race was a three-person dance, with City Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, consultant Sam Johnson and City Councilman Daniel Rickenmann fighting for votes and raising campaign cash.

Then Moe Baddourah entered the fray.

The former District 3 city councilman announced his run for the city’s top political post on Aug. 12, just a day before filing closed for this year’s city elections. The four hopefuls are vying to replace Mayor Steve Benjamin, who is not seeking reelection after three terms. This year’s election is on Nov. 2, with runoffs on Nov. 16, if necessary.

Baddourah’s comparatively late entry in the race leaves him with some catching up to do. For one, the other three candidates have been raising campaign funds for months, and all three have garnered six figures in donations. Rickenmann had raised $252,000 for the election cycle as of his second quarter report to the state Ethics Commission, while Devine had raised $230,000 and Johnson had raised $152,000.

Still, Baddourah is a known quantity in Columbia political circles and served two terms on city council from 2012 to 2019, though his second term was marred by a 19-month suspension from office after he was charged with domestic violence in 2016. He was eventually reinstated to Council after completing pre-trial intervention in that case.

With four people now in the race, the likelihood it could go to a runoff seems to have risen. At an Aug. 12 news conference announcing his campaign, Baddourah, a restaurant owner, said he thinks he could shake up the race.

“What I hear from customers and everywhere I go is that they are not excited about the (other) candidates,” Baddourah said. “That’s why they encouraged me to run.”

At-large Council candidate Deitra Stover Matthews picked up support from a neighborhood leader. She was endorsed by Pinehurst Neighborhood Association President Brenda Oliver. Matthews is one of seven candidates who have filed to seek the at-large post.

“Deitra’s investment in understanding our city, stemming from her upbringing here, has meant a lot to me,” Oliver said in a post on Matthews’ campaign Facebook page. “That is why I’m excited to support her in her candidacy for Columbia City Council at-large.”

Devine’s campaign is headed to a salon near you. The at-large councilwoman and mayoral hopeful shared on Twitter that she is kicking off a barber shop and salon tour. The first stop is from 9 to 11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 20, at Toliver’s Mane Event on North Main Street.

Though Rickenmann’s run for mayor has been going on for months, he is going to formally mark his candidacy with a campaign kickoff event at 5:30 p.m., Aug. 25, at his campaign office at 1404 Gervais St. Supporters will be able to get signs, stickers and other campaign material, and there will be light refreshments.

Heather Bauer, a candidate in the at-large council race, talked housing policy in a recent campaign release about keeping Columbia a livable place, particularly as student housing has proliferated downtown. Among other things, Bauer said she’d work to make sure development is uniform and sustainable citywide and look to increase code enforcement to ensure all student housing is code compliant.

Businessman and former state Secretary of Commerce Joe Taylor is the only person who has filed to run for the District 4 seat on City Council. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t going to campaign this fall.

“I intend to continue campaigning aggressively. I will continue calling voters, knocking on doors, and visiting neighborhoods all the way through till election day,” Taylor said. “If we really are going to turn Columbia around, we need a big voter turnout in District 4 on November 2.”

The former commerce chief is supporting Rickenmann in the mayor’s race.

This story was originally published August 19, 2021 at 12:23 PM.

Chris Trainor

The State

Chris Trainor is a retail reporter for The State and has been working for newspapers in South Carolina for more than 21 years, including previous stops at the (Greenwood) Index-Journal and the (Columbia) Free Times. He is the winner of a host of South Carolina Press Association awards, including honors in column writing, government beat reporting, profile writing, food writing, business beat reporting, election coverage, social media and more.