New mayor elected in Batesburg-Leesville runoff
Two weeks after an inconclusive election, residents of Batesburg-Leesville have decided on a new mayor.
Town Councilman David Bouknight won the town’s top office Tuesday in a runoff over fellow council member Steve Cain. Bouknight led unofficial results Tuesday with 63% of the vote to Cain’s 36%.
Bouknight and Cain were the top two vote-getters in the first round of the mayor’s election two weeks ago.
Bouknight won 42% of the first-round vote on Nov. 4 to Cain’s 29%, but because the town ordinance requires a candidate win more than 50% of the vote to take office, the two had to face off in a runoff election.
Greg Moseley came in third in the first round with 18% of the vote, while Larry McConnaughhay had 10%.
The winner will replace Mayor Lancer Shull, who is stepping down after eight years in office.
Bouknight had campaigned in defense of many of the decisions taken during Shull’s time in office, including a recently completed connection to Lexington County’s Joint Municipal Water and Sewer Commission to supplement the town’s 90-year-old water plant.
That was controversial as it meant Batesburg-Leesville would no longer be self-sufficient in its water system. Cain had argued against the decision, and said on the campaign trail that the current town council majority had not been transparent enough in its decision-making.
Cain won’t be leaving town politics, however. At the same time he was running for mayor, Cain also successfully ran for another term on Batesburg-Leesville Town Council in this year’s election, defeating Tyler List with two-thirds of the vote in District 3.
The town of 5,000 on the western edge of Lexington County near the Saluda County line is on the front line of growth as new development moves further west from Lexington.
This story was originally published November 18, 2025 at 9:36 PM.
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