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2021 PAC Endorsements

The Charleston Metro Chamber’s Political Action Committee is pleased to announce its endorsement decisions for the City of Charleston Council, Mount Pleasant Town Council, Mount Pleasant Mayor and Summerville Council races.

Endorsed candidates have been vetted through the PAC interview process, which includes written questionnaire responses and an interview with one of the PAC interview teams. All filed candidates were invited to participate. In each case, the endorsed candidates sought the PAC endorsement and participated in the selection process.  Endorsed candidates have strong alignment with the Chambers key policy priorities and strong vision for the future of their city or town. 

City of Charleston Endorsements

City Council District 4: Robert Mitchell (Re-Elected)

Robert Mitchell is the longest serving member on Charleston City Council and has earned a great deal of respect from his fellow councilmembers and constituents. He currently serves as chair of the Community Development Committee, one of the most powerful committees in the city. Mitchell believes that flooding, the rapidly rising cost of housing and educating our young people are the top three critical issues facing the city. He is known for his ability to communicate with constituents of diverse backgrounds and can often be seen walking the streets late into the night and early morning hours positively engaging his citizens.

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Robert’s campaign for reelection, please mail a check to “Robert Mitchell for City Council” at 728 King Street, Charleston, SC 29403. 

Mount Pleasant Mayor

Will Haynie (Re-Elected)

Will Haynie has served the Town of Mount Pleasant throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. He showed leadership during an unprecedented crisis to keep citizens safe and businesses open. Along the way, he has achieved many successes including working with council and the community to pass the new Comprehensive Plan and supporting the first affordable housing development in Mount Pleasant in over a decade. In his next term, he hopes to see Mount Pleasant remain the most in-demand area of the region because of how they take care of their people, their economy and their natural beauty.

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Will’s campaign, click on the following link.

Mount Pleasant Town Council

Lee Dittrich

Lee Dittrich has 25 years of law enforcement experience. His last years were served with the Mount Pleasant Police Department where he experienced firsthand the issues the town was facing. Dittrich says the three most critical issues for Mount Pleasant are the current public safety crisis with the police and fire departments, traffic congestion and proposed solution for the redesign of our highways and parking areas, and maintaining a limited government without unnecessary overreach on residents and businesses.

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Lee’s campaign, click on the following link.

Myra Jones

Myra Jones has lived and raised her family in Mount Pleasant for over 30 years. She began getting involved in local politics when local beach communities instituted restrictions to beach parking. Jones was one of the founders of the Charleston Beach Foundation and was instrumental in getting a law passed ensuring that municipalities cannot restrict access to public roadways that lead to our state’s public beaches without prior approval from SCDOT. Myra believes the three most critical issues for Mount Pleasant are controlling growth while maintaining the quality of life, affordable housing and infrastructure to meet the growing demands of the community.

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Myra’s campaign, click on the following link.

Carl Ritchie (Elected)

Carl Ritchie has served as the Police Chief for the last eight and a half years before retiring in May of 2021. He still has a strong desire to serve the Town of Mount Pleasant and believes he can have a positive impact on Town Council. Ritchie brings prior experience working with six different Mayors and numerous Town Council members in his 32 years of Mount Pleasant Law Enforcement experience.

His vision for Mount Pleasant in the next 20 years includes continuing to be the safest community in the nation, more business opportunities for residents in Mount Pleasant to reduce travel times and road congestion, traffic improvements that include a public transportation component and attainable housing for those who want to live and work in Mount Pleasant.

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Carl’s campaign, click on the following link.

Town of Summerville Endorsements

Town Council District 1: Aaron Brown (Elected)

Aaron Brown is running to continue the great progress the Town of Summerville has achieved in his tenure. Brown is focused on preserving and enhancing the quality of life while maintaining low taxes, low crime rates and building an economy that provides good paying jobs for Summerville residents. He is in tuned to the challenges that come with the continued growth Summerville is expected to see, but also recognizes the tremendous opportunity and need for smart growth strategies.  

If you are interested in making a personal contribution to Aaron’s campaign for reelection, please mail a check to “Aaron Brown Reelection Campaign Fund” at P.O. Box 922, Summerville, SC 29484. 

Town Council District 5: Kima Garten-Schmidt (Elected)

Kima Garten-Schmidt has previously served three terms on Summerville Town Council. She supports extending the Lowcountry Rapid Transit to Summerville in the future and finding ways to reduce congestion and traffic on Summerville’s main roads. She talked about the fantastic men and women working in Summerville’s police department and expressed her desire to further collaborate to pursue public safety improvements and community outreach.

Qualified

Candidates who are deemed qualified, display the necessary characteristics to serve on council, but may not align 100% with the Chamber on our key policy priorities. 

City of Charleston Council District 12: Carol Jackson

Carol Jackson serves constituents on James Island. She believes the three most critical issues for the City of Charleston are managing and incentivizing sustainable growth, proactively broadening the base of the City’s economy and leading and living into the science-based knowledge to chart our region’s long-term climate resiliency. She is concerned about the rising cost of housing in the region and has an extensive background working on housing affordability in Northern Virginia. Jackson does not support the completion of the Mark Clark Extension. 

Mount Pleasant Mayor: Kathy Landing

Kathy Landing has built a successful financial planning practice in Mount Pleasant over the past 36 years and spent one term serving on Mount Pleasant Town Council. She believes the three most critical issues for the town are traffic congestion, high housing costs vs. the need for workers to live near their jobs, and diversification of the economy beyond hospitality and healthcare. She believes the mayor must be a leading voice in the community.

Posted on
October 11th 2021
Written by
Madison Beard
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