Rickenmann finishes first in Columbia mayoral voting, will face Devine in runoff
District 4 City Councilman Daniel Rickenmann led the way Tuesday in a four-way race for Columbia mayor, and will face at-large City Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine in a runoff in two weeks.
Rickenmann nabbed 43.5% of the vote in Tuesday’s municipal election, according to unofficial results from Richland County. Devine finished second with 30.2% of the vote, while former mayoral aide Sam Johnson got 24.3%. Former City Councilman Moe Baddourah got 1.9%.
The results of Tuesday’s race will be certified at 10 a.m. Thursday by the city election commission. Because no candidate got more than 50% of the vote, a runoff between Rickenmann and Devine will be Nov. 16.
The candidates are vying to replace Mayor Steve Benjamin, who announced in February he wouldn’t be seeking re-election this year.
Rickenmann, who works in renewable energy development, has served three terms on City Council across two different stints. He raised the most campaign cash for the race — more than $400,000 as of Oct. 19 — and often focused his campaign on business and public safety issues. He was endorsed by the Central Carolina Realtors Association.
Devine, an attorney, has held an at-large seat on Columbia City Council for 19 years. She is the only African American woman to ever be elected to the council and she is vying to be the first woman elected Columbia’ mayor. Some of the key pieces of her campaign were the idea of establishing an equity office at the city and enhancing regional cooperation to tackle issues. She was endorsed by Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn of Columbia.
If Rickenmann is able to carry the momentum and win in two weeks, his election would mark a change in Columbia politics. While city races are nonpartisan, the capital city has been led for three terms by Benjamin, who is a Democrat. Rickenmann, meanwhile, is a conservative, and was supported strongly by the state Republican Party, which sent out mailers on his behalf in the city race.
Meanwhile, Devine and Johnson split Democratic support ahead of Tuesday’s race, with folks such as U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn and Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford endorsing Devine, while politicos such as Benjamin and City Councilman Sam Davis endorsed Johnson. Devine will likely look to galvanize support ahead of the Nov. 16 runoff.
This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 11:50 PM.
