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Irregularities in a recently concluded South Carolina Senate race have prompted state election officials to demand answers from officials in a rural Palmetto State county.
Howie Knapp, executive director of the S.C. Election Commission (SCVotes.gov), penned a letter on Monday to Lee County’s board of voter registration and elections expressing “concern regarding discrepancies observed in the recount results for the November 5, 2024 election.”
Specifically, Knapp said he was worried about results in the hotly contested race for S.C. Senate District 29 – which saw incumbent state senator Gerald Malloy narrowly vanquished by Republican farmer JD Chaplin.
Chaplin defeated Malloy by a mere 278 votes (out of nearly 50,000 ballots cast) – or at least that was the initial tally recorded by county election offices (and reported to the state). Because the margin of victory was within one percent, a mandatory recount was ordered.
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When that recount was concluded – and certified by the county – Chaplin’s victory was confirmed by a substantially narrower margin. According to the new numbers, Chaplin received 24,838 votes compared to Malloy’s 24,751 – a spread of just 87 votes.
In Lee County, there was a nearly 200-vote swing in Malloy’s favor – raising questions about the integrity of the ballots in that county. Malloy is reportedly weighing whether or not to file a protest of the election results due to these irregularities.
Meanwhile, Chaplin has been sworn in as a state senator and is participating in his chamber’s orientation at the S.C. State House this week.
Knapp’s letter to the commission stressed “the urgency of understanding what went wrong” in the hopes of “ensuring such issues do not arise again.”
Take a look…
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Knapp’s letter asked local officials to provide him with a “detailed explanation” of what “specific errors or irregularities” led to the discrepancies in the S.C. Senate District 29 race. He also requested a “comprehensive breakdown” of the recount process – and documentation of “all communications, logs and procedures followed during the recount process.
Knapp also asked for “an explanation of why these discrepancies were not identified and addressed prior to certification.”
In an accompanying letter sent to the office of governor Henry McMaster, Knapp made clear the Lee County issues were “specific” to that county and “(did) not impact the results of any other race within the county or in any other election held in South Carolina on November 5, 2024.”
“I am committed to ensuring that all issues are addressed appropriately and in accordance with our established procedures,” Knapp wrote.
Lee County is not the only South Carolina government to struggle with running elections. FITSNews has chronicled persistent, pervasive issues in Richland County for many years.
Stay tuned to FITSNews for updates on this unfolding electoral drama…
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and seven children.
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2 comments
I am a resident of Lee County and nothing that happens here surprises me. Even if she responds, SLED should be asked to investigate the whole election process in Lee County from how precinct workers are selected to absentee ballots . Maybe this incident can be the one that finally insures ballot integrity here.
Republicans own the state yet they still cheat