Almost $50,000 in funds for a Hilton Head Town Council seat? That shouldn’t be the norm
Does Hilton Head Island need to worry about Town Council candidates buying their way into office?
The amount of money raised by two council candidates is a sign that Island voters may need to start thinking about that in the future.
The Island Packet’s Blake Douglas reported that incumbent Councilwoman Tamara Becker and former Town Councilwoman Kim Likins together raised nearly $50,000 in their race the Ward 4 seat on Hilton Head town council. Likins raised $29,118, and Becker raised $19,020, Douglas reported.
That is an unusually high amount for a town the size of Hilton Head. For comparison, Likins and Becker far out raised other candidates, and the three mayoral candidates combined raised about $10,000, according to The Island Packet’s report.
Nothing indicates anything nefarious is going on with the campaigns of Likins and Becker, but the money their race has brought in is unsettling.
Why should Hilton Head voters be worried about the influx of cash into the Town Council race?
Though it’s typically the case in national elections that money gets votes, local and municipal races in South Carolina have largely stay centered on the reputation and principles of the candidates over the decades. Principles risk being replaced by fatter bank accounts if campaign funding continues to increase in municipal races.
It feels like right now more and more irrational candidates and egomaniacs are running for office or gaining positions of political power like those with the Horry County GOP, in which a trio elected to leadership positions ran the party into the ground before resigning.
Likins and Becker seem perfectly reasonable, but future candidates might not be.
In future local elections, money could compound the problem of disreputable candidates. The irrational candidates and egomaniacs who just happen to be better connected to wealth could better promote themselves. That could have severe consequences for any place, and one self-centered official can disrupt municipalities the size of Hilton Head.
Money in politics goes side by side with partisan agendas and corruption. If campaign spending becomes a determining factor in Hilton Head Town Council elections, the town might lose candidates with practical ideas on how municipal government should function and have them replaced by candidates with points to prove.
What exactly can be done to stop cash from having undue influence on town elections might be politically impractical. South Carolina lawmakers aren’t even thinking about campaign finance reform.
Local reporting can help prevent cash from swaying town elections. Local reporting on elections helps voters see beyond the promotions that money can buy. Reporters also unveil the dollars behind candidates, giving voters perspective on whether a candidate’s war chest is giving them an outsized voice compared to their experience or principles.
Hilton Head Island is made great by people who care, not by those with the richest campaign accounts.