The State endorsement: Our choices for SC Senate

South Carolina voters elect 46 state senators to its bicameral General Assembly every four years. It’s known as the more deliberative body, and that view was only shored up this year after some shenanigans in the state House of Representatives involving several bills, including massive and complex energy legislation that the Senate wisely hit pause on.

Now it’s time for voters to again decide who will serve in the upper chamber, which currently has 30 Republicans, 15 Democrats and one independent. The State Editorial Board is making endorsements in five Senate races ahead of Election Day on June 11 where the bulk of our readers live in Lexington and Richland counties. We are endorsing in Democratic primaries in districts 19, 22 and 26 and Republican primaries in districts 23 and 26. The Democratic endorsement in District 22 was the focus of extra reporting and discussion, so we are publishing it separately.

If no candidate gets more than half the vote in a primary, the top two vote-getters will advance to a runoff election June 25. Since no one else filed to run in District 23, that race will be decided this month. The contests in districts 19, 22 and 26 won’t be settled until the general election on Nov. 5.

In the District 19 Democratic primary, The State endorses incumbent Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine. She is running for her first full term after being overwhelmingly elected in a Jan. 2 special election to replace Sen. John L. Scott Jr., who had died. Devine was Columbia’s first African-American female council member and served from 2002 to 2021. Her re-election challenger now is Michael Addison, and she would face United Citizens candidate Chris Nelums in November if she wins. She easily defeated them both in January to become a senator. When she won then, she became just the sixth female senator in a chamber where women are vastly underrepresented. Her experience, vision and record of public service make this an easy choice.

In the District 23 Republican primary, The State endorses three-term incumbent Sen. Katrina Shealy. First elected in 2012, Shealy showed the courage of her convictions for voting to defeat a near-total abortion ban in South Carolina and then voting against the six-week ban that became law last year, standing with what were then four other “Sister Senators” to decry so many men controlling women statewide. Shealy wanted a 12-week ban, and 20 weeks for rape and incest. Her votes made it inevitable that she would face a primary challenge from her right, but Shealy should not be punished for trying to find compromise. She showed her measured approach again throughout her interview with us, including by decrying the “rushed” energy bill.

In the District 26 Democratic primary, The State endorses Sen. Dick Harpootlian. He and Rep. Russell Ott are battling to replace retiring Sen. Nikki Setzler in a newly drawn district. Ott was first elected to the House in a special election in 2013. Harpootlian won a Senate seat in 2018 and made a reputation challenging state budget practices. Harpootlian wants the new race to be about Ott’s votes for the state’s abortion ban and permitless gun carrying, and is working to hammer home their differences on those issues. Ott is criticizing Harpootlian for a vote against a housing project for homeless veterans. Both discussions need more context. Ultimately, we thought it important to have someone in the Senate who challenges the status quo smartly.

In the District 26 Republican primary, The State endorses Jason Guerry. His opponents are Billy Oswald and Chris Smith. Guerry owns a construction company, Oswald owns a law firm, and Smith has been a real estate broker and airline worker. In recent weeks, Oswald settled a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by a former employee and then incorrectly told a reporter the case had been “dropped.” Smith has a base of support after losing to Setzler in the 2020 election, but Smith didn’t give us a sense of how he would legislate in our Q&A, using only nine words instead of the offered 250 to explain how he would assess and meet energy needs. By contrast, Guerry’s thoughtful, thorough answers showed how he thinks and communicates.

This story was originally published May 30, 2024 at 8:10 AM.