York mayor faces election challenge

A retired York firefighter who was defeated four years ago by longtime York Mayor Eddie Lee is once again challenging Lee for the city’s top elected post.

Dan Warren, 51, a retired York firefighter who lost to Lee in the 2011 election, has filed to run against him in the Nov. 3 municipal election. Lee, a 60-year-old Winthrop University history professor who has been mayor since 2002, is seeking re-election.

The election filing period is underway for mayor and council posts in York and four other western York County municipalities: Clover, McConnells, Hickory Grove and Smyrna.

The deadline to file for election in those five communities is 5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4. Filing for candidates in the town of Sharon closed last week.

The York mayor’s race was one of only a few contested races in Western York County as of Monday.

Warren has called for change in York, saying the city needs to look at what he called excessive spending, be more helpful to people seeking services at City Hall and do more to attract business.

“I think we need to change a few things from where we’re at now,” Warren said. He referred to a welcome sign on U.S. 321 for people coming from McConnells, but nothing on East Liberty Street, a more high-traffic entrance.

Lee said he runs on his record. “I said when I got elected in 2002 that we would do good things for York,” he said. “And we have done good things, and will do even more.”

He said saving the York County Courthouse in downtown York and pushing for the S.C. 5 Bypass widening by York County are among recent accomplishments.

“I have fought for the things that we deserve, and at the top of my list would be saving the York County Courthouse,” Lee said. “The second would be the widening of the Highway 5 Bypass. I’ve always fought for the people I represent.”

Warren said York City Hall is not as responsive to customers as it should be. “It seems like everyone I’ve spoken to recently who has gone to City Hall and tried to talk about a problem, they’ve just been shut down and shuffled from one department to another.

“I think when folks come to us with a problem in the community, we should at least listen to them, investigate what we can or can’t do to fix the problem and give them a straight answer.”

Warren also said he’d also like to “work on bringing more business into town. And I’d like to improve community relations, but I can’t do it by myself.”

Also in York, City Council members Edward Brown, Bill Miller and Mike Fuesser are unopposed in their quest for re-election in Districts 2, 3 and 4, respectively.

In Clover, Mayor Donnie Grice is unopposed, as are Town Council members Jay Dover, Ann Harvey and Wes Spurrier.

In Sharon, Beverly Blair is seeking re-election as mayor, but six candidates will compete for four at-large Town Council seats: Bob Barnette, Jeremy Bradham, Elaine Cheek, Thomas Childers, Donald Krapp and Bobby Stephenson.

A few offices still have no candidates filed. In McConnells, no candidates have filed for the town council race, according to SCVotes, and the town’s longtime mayor John Harshaw died Aug. 9 after 21 years in office. Sonny Metker has filed to replace him.

In Hickory Grove, Larry Earl is seeking re-election as mayor.

And in Smyrna – the smallest incorporated municipality in South Carolina, with just 45 residents – no candidates had filed for either mayor or town council.

The close of candidate filing isn’t the last word on the matter. Write-in candidates have a 14-day period after the close of filing to declare their campaigns with the York County Elections and Voter Registration Office, said deputy election director Allen Helms.

If no candidates file by the deadline in any race, the towns will hold an open write-in election where anyone who receives the most votes – even if it’s only one – will be elected to a full term.

Candidates for all seats should file at the Board of Voter Registration and Elections of York County, 13 S. Congress St., York.

This story was originally published August 25, 2015 at 10:29 AM with the headline "York mayor faces election challenge."