SURFSIDE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – There will be a runoff election in the Town of Surfside Beach, the town clerk confirmed to News13.
Unofficial results on Tuesday showed three candidates, David Pellegrino, Bruce Dietrich and Debbie Scoles, won the three available seats with a majority. However, now the town says the candidates in third and fourth place, Debbie Scoles and incumbent Tim Courtney, will go head to head for the remaining seat.
The discrepancy comes because procedures change when there is a declared write-in candidate. Scoles ran as a write-in candidate and there was some confusion as to whether votes for her should count towards the overall total which is used to determine a majority.
News13 spoke to both candidates on Thursday afternoon and asked why they should be chosen for the open seat.
“Because I know the issues that are on hand. I’ve been here for a while so, you know, and I hate to see these ugly elections with the mailers,” said Courtney.
Scoles said, “I gather my facts. I don’t listen to rumors, I don’t spread rumors and I don’t repeat anything that I don’t have documentation, legal documentation, to back it up.”
The runoff election will happen on April 17, 2018. The election commission will also meet on Friday, April 6 to hear a candidate protest.
