Rom Reddy Attends Spartanburg GOP Governor Debate
rom reddy joined three other Republican candidates on the campus of Wofford College in Spartanburg for the final debate before South Carolina’s June 9 governor primary. The South Carolina Republican Party said the stage was limited to candidates who reached a 5% minimum polling average, and Pamela Evette declined an invitation and scheduled a campaign event in North Myrtle Beach.
Reddy appeared with U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman and South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson. The debate gave voters one last chance to compare the field before they mark ballots in the primary, and the lineup showed which candidates cleared the party’s threshold for Tuesday’s forum.
Wofford College stage
The debate took place Tuesday at Wofford College in Spartanburg, bringing the Republican governor candidates together for the last scheduled forum before the primary. Party leaders said the invitation list depended on a 5% minimum polling average, a rule that narrowed the field for the campus event.
Josh Kimbrell did not meet that polling requirement and was not invited. Evette was invited, but she chose a campaign event in North Myrtle Beach instead, leaving the Spartanburg debate without one of the candidates who had been considered for the stage.
June 9 primary
The immediate question for Republican voters is which candidates survive the June 9 primary and how the field looks after the first round of voting. If no one wins outright and the race moves to a runoff, the party has already scheduled another debate for June 16 in Conway on the campus of Coastal Carolina University.
That means Tuesday’s debate was not only the final scheduled forum before the primary, but also the last public comparison for voters before the ballot count sets up the next step. The runoff debate in Conway would give the remaining candidates another chance to make their case if the June 9 result does not settle the nomination.
