Here’s who won in Lexington-Richland 5 school board, bond vote
Voters in Lexington-Richland 5 had two big decisions to make on Election Day. They had to decide the makeup of the school board for the next two years, and whether they want the school district to bond for $240 million worth of school projects.
On the Lexington County side of the district, USC professor Scott Herring led in unofficial results Tuesday with 34% of the vote, followed closely behind by board incumbent Catherine Huddle who was only 13 votes behind. Former board member Ken Loveless trailed at 31%. The top two vote-getters in that district will win seats on the school board.
In Richland County, Jason Baynham had a narrow lead over Mike Ward, 50% to 49%, with all precincts reporting Tuesday. That’s a 351-vote difference.
Ken Loveless had served on the board from 2018 to 2022, when he fell short of re-election by 12 votes.. Huddle had served on the board since 2020. Herring was an unsuccessful candidate for the board in 2022. Current board chair Rebecca Blackburn Hines declined to seek re-election from Lexington County.
In Richland County, board vice chair Matt Hogan also decided not to run for another term.
Voters across the district were giving the go-ahead to a $240 million bond issue, which had around 70% voting yes.
The $240 million bond issue would lead to the construction of a new school and the expansion or additions of several others. Increasing capacity at existing schools will also lessen the need for rezoning in the Chapin-Irmo district.
The district’s previous major bond issue in 2008 was the subject of controversy, including the purchase of a $1.2 million site for a school that was never built after it was determined the site didn’t have proper road access for school day traffic.
Lexington-Richland 5 later commissioned an outside audit of its 2008 bond spending, which was disputed by a construction firm criticized in the report, questioned by a state inspector general’s report and resulted in a lawsuit from a former superintendent.
This story was originally published November 5, 2024 at 9:09 PM.
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