Only one candidate is confirmed to be running
Voters in South Carolina are among the Americans who will elect a new state ag representative this fall.
People will be voting to replace Republican Hugh Weathers, who has held the role since 2004.
In January 2022 announced he wouldn’t seek re-election when his term ended.
As of Jan. 16, only one candidate is confirmed to be in the race.
That person is Fred West, the director of market development at the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, who is running as a Republican.
West’s campaign website lists four issues he plans to address if elected:
- Bringing a business mind to the department to protect ag heritage and push back against unnecessary red tape,
- Preventing foreign countries from purchasing South Carolina farmland,
- Prioritizing local ag to reduce dependence on imports, and
- Protecting consumers through thorough and accountable inspections.
No other candidates from any other political party have entered the race thus far.
And those who might are likely face an uphill battle.
In the 2022 election, Weathers won 77.6 percent of the vote.
The next closest challenger, David Edmond of the Green Party, secured 15.2 percent of support.
In the 2018 election cycle Weathers earned 75.7 percent of the vote, and almost 80 percent in the 2014 election.
South Carolinians haven’t elected a Democrat ag commissioner since 1982 when the late D. Lesle Tindal received 51.47 percent of the vote against incumbent Republican G. Bryan Patrick.
But during his third term in office, Lindal switched political affiliations and became a Republican.