Could Columbia City Council get a shake-up? What to know about the upcoming election
Three Columbia City Council seats are up for election this November, raising the possibility of a broad shake-up of the current City Council.
One of the city’s at-large council seats will be up for election, as will seats for Districts Two and Three.
Residents who want to run for any of those seats will be able to file as candidates beginning at noon Friday, Aug. 25. Residents can file to run for City Council through Friday, Sept. 8, at noon, according to the Richland County Elections Office. The filing fee is $530.
At least three people have already announced they plan to run for the at-large council seat held by Howard Duvall. Duvall has said he won’t run again when his term expires at the end of this year.
Jesse Bullard, vice president of business for Southern Way Catering; Tyler Bailey, a local attorney; and Christa Williams, owner of Uncle Willie’s Grocery Store, have announced their candidacies for the at-large seat.
Ed McDowell currently represents District Two, which includes downtown Columbia and part of north Columbia. Will Brennan represents District Three, which includes Five Points, Rosewood and the southern part of the city.
Terms for council members Aditi Bussells (at-large), Tina Herbert (District One) and Peter Brown (District Four), along with Mayor Daniel Rickenmann end in 2025.
The election will be held Tuesday, Nov. 7, with early voting beginning Oct. 23.
To vote in the election, residents must be registered by Oct. 8 if they’re registering online, by fax or by email. If a resident wishes to register in person, they must to so by Oct. 6.
