Beaufort County’s ballot for the Nov. 3 general election has come into focus, with voters set to decide several county council seats and a handful of school board races after a summer of primaries and runoffs sorted out the field.
On the county council side, incumbent David Bartholomew will run unopposed in District 2 after chairing the council’s Community Services and Land Use Committee and serving as vice chair of the Public Facility and Safety Committee. District 4 will send Republican Michael J.D. Andersen, an accountant who has also worked as a special advisor at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to the general election after he defeated Thomas Grygowski in the June primary. Andersen has said his priorities include line-by-line budget review, full infrastructure reviews before new development gets approved, and additional sheriff’s office staffing north of the Broad River.
District 5 will pit Republican Joshua Hower, who won a June 23 runoff over Mary Jeans Otto, against Democrat Lynn Gerson. District 6 features a rematch of sorts for vice chair Tab Tabernik, a Republican and lifelong educator who most recently chaired the Beaufort County Library Board of Trustees, against Democrat Carolyn Fournier. District 8 will send Republican Kraig Gordon against Democrat Trey Judy, a retired communications professional, after both won their respective June primaries. District 9 incumbent Mark Lawson faces Democrat Jannine Mutterer, an attorney who chairs the library board’s finance committee and says her priorities include infrastructure funding and grants for Bluffton schools. Republican Elizabeth Galloway, a retired dentist and 40-year Sea Pines resident, is the only name on the District 11 ballot after winning her primary; she has said her focus includes overdevelopment, traffic congestion and stormwater management.
Three council members — Chair Alice Howard, former Chair Joseph Passiment and former Vice Chair Larry McEllyn — are not seeking reelection, meaning the council will see fresh leadership dynamics regardless of how the contested races shake out. District 1’s Gerald Dawson, District 3’s York Glover and District 7’s Logan Cunningham are not up this cycle and will continue serving through 2028; Cunningham has since entered the race for South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District following Rep. Nancy Mace’s bid for governor.
Down the ballot, the Beaufort County School Board will fill seven seats through nonpartisan races decided outright on Nov. 3. Incumbents David Carr in District 7, Carlton Dallas in District 8, Elizabeth Hey in District 10, William Smith in District 3 and Victor Ney in District 5 all face challengers, while open seats in Districts 2 and 4 will go to entirely new representatives. County election officials say the full slate, including precinct-level contests, depends on each voter’s specific address.
