How we’ll make endorsements in Columbia, Myrtle Beach and SC District 88 elections | Opinion
South Carolina voters will soon elect a number of public servants to represent them in a range of local and state jurisdictions.
I’m here to help vet 32 candidates in some of those races.
Longtime readers will recall that I also offered this service in the 2024 elections, independently surveying candidates, fact-checking their answers and publishing their entire Q&As to help with voters’ research, then issuing recommendations in several races as early voting got underway.
This time, I am interviewing candidates and issuing endorsements in Nov. 4 races for Columbia and Myrtle Beach mayor and City Council and in the Oct. 21 Republican primary to replace former state Rep. R.J. May in Lexington County’s State House District 88. There is only one Democratic candidate for that seat, so he’ll automatically face the GOP primary winner Dec. 23 and the top vote-getter will then complete May’s term.
I wish I could cover and make endorsements in more races. Unfortunately, because of limited bandwidth, time and resources, I had to make a manageable list. It is an ambitious undertaking because the campaigns are short and I have one fact-checker: me.
But I’m not the only person making endorsements. Our recommendations are made by a group.
This year’s endorsements will be made by The McClatchy South Carolina Editorial Board. The participants are thoughtful people I know from working or corresponding with them over time. Two are former longtime South Carolina journalists who worked at The State and elsewhere. Two have written commentaries for the McClatchy South Carolina opinion section I oversee.
We span the political spectrum and range in age and worldviews, but collectively, we’re a group that values the written word and community conversations. I’d say we all value nuanced views over napalming other people’s perspectives, but you, our readers, can be the judge of that.
My advisory board members are Sherry Beasley, a longtime educator and Columbia resident; Toni Etheridge, a strategic advisor and writer who lives in Forest Acres; Paul Osmundson, a retired senior editor at The State and a Forest Acres resident; and Pat Robertson, a retired editor and outdoors columnist who lives in Blythewood. I’ll oversee the effort as McClatchy’s South Carolina opinion editor and a Columbia resident. As you can see, we’re based in the Midlands, but I think we’re well-versed in many issues that transcend ZIP codes.
As always, I welcome your feedback at mhall@thestate.com, and we truly hope that you find our Q&As and our endorsements of use as you consider who to entrust with your vote and why. I will publish the Q&As first so you can assess and compare candidates on your own, prior to us weighing in with any recommendations. The idea is to empower you to make decisions, not to make decisions for you. We’re here to suggest ideas worth thinking about, not to tell you what to think.
Like last year, our endorsements will be based on a candidate’s achievements, background, character, demeanor and experience. We’ll ask if they have done the job, if they can do the job and if they will do the job. I see elections as job interviews and say the public has hiring power. So think of us as employment screeners.
The surveys I emailed each candidate were designed to test their knowledge, commitment, way of thinking and leadership style. Each person had two weeks to respond and knew the surveys would be published in their entirety and used for our endorsements. Our recommendations will also be based on additional research, including reporting from our newsroom and others, voter participation records, criminal histories and campaign finance disclosures.
In short, we’ll make endorsements based on how seriously candidates take the assignment. The length and depth of their survey replies varied, and we’ll evaluate the Q&As and share our research to help with yours before early voting begins.
I think there is a place for thoughtful people of different backgrounds to come together and evaluate the people who claim to have the public’s best interest at heart. We aren’t going to campaign for any person or political party. In fact, city races are nonpartisan although party politics can come into play. We could endorse Republicans, Democrats or independents.
I think voting is a privilege that we need to cherish individually and collectively and that local endorsements — by people who take the time to think through and talk out issues — are vital for both opinion journalism and an informed, connected community. We’re offering our thoughts for voters to consider with all the other information that they’re being bombarded with. We’re here to cut through a clutter of conflicting statements and make a good-faith effort to ensure we elect well-meaning, well-qualified candidates to represent the public’s interest, not their own.
With that goal, I’m glad to report that only one of the 32 candidates I set out to interview ignored me. At-large Columbia City Council candidate Tony Bowen did not reply to a dozen messages from me or an invitation to a recent public forum. Myrtle Beach candidate Daniel Aumen told me several times he’d reply to the survey but hasn’t yet. Are they serious candidates? They still have time to do what their opponents did: Reply and make themselves available for follow-up questions as part of my fact-checking.
I’d like to thank the other 30 candidates who responded, not just for taking time to share their perspectives and policy proposals with me and the public, but for putting themselves out there to be judged by voters. It’s not easy to do. But it’s essential that voters have choices for who might represent them in halls of power.
So thanks to the candidates for working to make their communities better. And thanks to our readers and every voter for doing the same thing by learning about their choices before these elections and casting ballots that can make a difference.
Matthew T. Hall is McClatchy’s South Carolina opinion editor. Email him at mhall@thestate.com.
This story was originally published October 1, 2025 at 5:00 AM.