Hello REALTORS®,
Happy New Year! In my last report, I took stock of what we accomplished in 2023. For my first Watchdog Report of the new year, I will preview what we expect in the governmental arena.
Elections
It’s obvious, but I think that elections will be the biggest story of 2024. The Presidential elections are on everyone’s radar, but there is a lot more on the ballot in 2024. These are the races we will watch and, in some cases, participate in through RPAC:
Congress
All members of the US House will be on the ballot, but this is the cycle every six years when neither of our US Senators are on the ballot. We expect several of the congressional races to be competitive including the two representing the Upstate:
- US House District 3 represented by Jeff Duncan
- US House District 4 represented by William Timmons
The only other “statewide” races on the ballot will be the various solicitors who prosecute crimes in our state. Our constitutional offices, like the Governor, run again in 2026.
SC General Assembly
Both the SC House and Senate will be on the ballot in 2024. There are 11 House and 4 Senate seats that represent Anderson, Oconee, Pickens counties.
County Councils and Countywide Offices
- Anderson County Council: all seven members of county council run every two years.
- Oconee County Council: District 2 (Matthew Durham), District 4 (Julian Davis), and District 5 (Glen Hart) will be on the ballot.
- Pickens County Council: District 3 (Alex Saitta), District 4 (Roy Costner), District 5 (Chris Bowers), and District 6 (Henry Wilson) will be on the ballot.
In addition to the county councils, the offices of Clerk of Court, Sheriff, Coroner, Treasurer, and Auditor will be on the ballot in each county.
City Councils
Most of our city councils run in the odd years, but three will be on the ballot in 2024.
- Clemson City Council seats represented by Alesia Smith, Lillian Boatwright, and John Fulmer will be on the ballot in November. Clemson uses the at-large method for their elections.
- Williamston City Council Ward 3 (Tabatha Austin), Ward 4 (Chris Alexander), and Mayor (Rocky Burgess) will be on the ballot in November.
- Anderson City Council is different from the others. Their election is on April 2. District 2 (Luis Martinez II), District 4 (Tony Steward), Seat 6 (Rick Laughridge), and Seat 8 (at-large seat represented by John Roberts) will be on the ballot. Filing opens later this month.
Partisanship, filing, primaries, voter registration, etc.
All the races, except the city council races, are partisan. That means there will be primaries. These are the important election dates in 2024:
- February 3: Democratic Presidential Preference Primary
- February 24: Republican Presidential Preference Primary
- March 15-29: Filing for all the offices except city councils
- June 11: Primaries for all the offices except city councils
- Late July/early August: filing for city councils (except Anderson)
- November 5: General Election
To participate in the election process, you must be registered to vote 30 days before the election. So, if you are not registered and would like to vote in the Democratic Presidential Preference Primary, you need to register to vote by January 4.
Read future Watchdog Reports for more information about upcoming elections. Your association’s RPAC Committee will publish a voter guide before each election to help you decide how you will vote.
Legislative Session
The SC General Assembly convenes the second half of the two-year legislative session at 12 noon on January 9. Your SC Association of REALTORS® will have a team of government affairs professionals, led by Chief Advocacy Officer Lindsay Jackson, at the State House representing Realtors. These are the key legislative issues your association will focus on in 2024:
- Short-Term Rentals: Passage of legislation to provide for business certainty and protection of private property rights for short-term rental owners and ensure that short-term rentals are properly licensed, regulated, and taxed.
- Unfair Service Agreements: Passage of legislation to limit long-term marketing and listing agreements to protect property owners from unconscionable contracts.
- Realtor Practice Act Update: Support legislation to update and modernize the license law for licensed real estate agents.
Your association also monitors and weighs in on other legislation throughout the legislative session that affects Realtors. We’ll help keep you informed on all our efforts throughout the legislative session.
Happy New Year!
Michael Dey, Director of Government Affairs