Steve Benjamin endorses Sam Johnson in Columbia mayoral race
Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin on Wednesday endorsed Sam Johnson in the 2021 Columbia mayoral race.
Johnson, 33, was Benjamin’s chief of staff in the mayor’s office for a number of years, and now is a consultant with the Nexsen Pruet law firm and its public relations division. Four people are running for mayor in the capital city this year: former District 3 Councilman Moe Baddourah, at-large Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, Johnson, and District 4 city Councilman Daniel Rickenmann.
Benjamin, who has been Columbia’s mayor since 2010 and is the city’s first African American mayor, is not seeking re-election this year.
The current mayor said he has worked closely with Johnson through the years.
“We have innovated together, we’ve worked to build consensus and push Columbia to think big and dream big,” Benjamin said at a Wednesday news conference. “And we’ve worked together to imagine a city where every single child ... has the opportunity to live up to his or her God-given potential, to imagine a city where every single one of our babies has the chance to do great, great things.”
As the Nov. 2 election has crept closer, endorsements have been rolling into the mayoral race. Aside from Benjamin, Johnson also has gotten support from District 1 City Councilman Sam Davis and District 2 City Councilman Ed McDowell.
Meanwhile, Devine has been touting endorsements from a number of officials, including Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford, Democratic state Sen. Mia McLeod and former City Councilwoman Anne Sinclair. Devine also got a boost from an out-of-state mayor on Wednesday when Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles endorsed her campaign in a Twitter video. Lyles is a Columbia native who attended A.C. Flora High School, according to Devine’s campaign Twitter account.
Rickenmann has been receiving support from some key players in the Columbia business community. For instance, former state Secretary of Commerce Joe Taylor, who is unopposed in his bid for the District 4 city council seat, has been backing Rickenmann.
Johnson said Wednesday that he was thrilled to get Benjamin’s endorsement.
“I can’t imagine what Columbia would be without Mayor Benjamin’s leadership, and without his vision,” Johnson said. “To have him standing with us here today, for (him) to say it’s time to take his vision to the next level, and that our campaign is the one to do it, really means the world.”
Benjamin’s influence touches nearly every corner of Columbia city politics, and he has gained national attention in recent years in various ways. He is a past president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and he delivered a speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
Still, his endorsement in a city race hasn’t always guaranteed victory. For instance, in 2015 he endorsed Aaron Bishop for the District 2 city council seat and Andy Smith for an at-large post. Bishop and Smith lost those races to Howard Duvall and McDowell, respectively. On the other hand, in the 2017 council races, Benjamin flexed his muscles in the District 1 election and came out with a strong endorsement for Davis in a race against Chris Sullivan. Davis won that race.
This story was originally published September 8, 2021 at 2:39 PM.
