Tribble, Lane in Incredible Tie After Dist. 7 GOP Primary
In a stunning twist from the District 7 GOP Primary, incumbent David Tribble and first-time candidate Justin Lane have ended in a statistical tie, both accruing 646 votes apiece for the GOP nomination for the Laurens County Council District 7 within Clinton city. The unexpected deadlock has now mandated a recount, instructed by the Laurens County Board of Elections.
Recount and Certifications
The confirmation of the election results by the S.C. Election Commission is scheduled to occur on the upcoming Thursday. Election officials now face the task of determining if any provisional ballots from District 7 precincts are permissible for counting. Lynne West, the executive director of the Laurens County Board of Elections, confirmed that if the tie remains even after the certification, another election would have to be conducted.
Other County Council Primaries
In other notable county council primary races, political newbie Matthew Brownlee emerged victorious in the GOP nomination for County Council District 2. He succeeded in defeating Dale Stetz with an overwhelming majority of 88% votes. As of now, Brownlee is expected to run unopposed in November. In District 3, incumbent Shirley Clark won the Democratic Primary, overcoming Lee McDaniel, who collected 46.5% of the votes. Clark is also anticipated to run unopposed in the November race for her second term.
Sheriff Reynolds, Canupp Attain Victory
Laurens County Sheriff Don Reynolds was successful in securing the Republican nomination, thus clearing his path towards a probable third term in office. After defeating Republican challenger Chris Wilkes with 72% of the vote, he is set to run unopposed in November, barring any write-in efforts. Upon his victory, Reynolds expressed his gratitude and committed to continuing his duty of providing robust law enforcement for the county’s citizens.
Rep. Jones Fails to Emerge in Runoff
In the hotly contested race for the District 3 Congressional seat, Laurens native Stewart Jones fell short in his attempt to succeed Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.). Mark Burns and Sheri Biggs, both hailing from Anderson, seemingly progress to a run-off for the GOP nomination. Despite Jones carrying his home county of Laurens with 50.1% votes, his overall 19.5% didn’t match up to Burns and Biggs, who led with 31% and 29%, respectively.
