Burns, Sullivan To Face Off In February Run-Off

Travelers Rest businessman Mike Burns fell just short of winning the special election Republican primary for the District 17 seat of the S.C. House outright  Tuesday. A run-off will be held Feb. 5. 

Burns garnered 1,114 votes Tuesday out of 2,242 total votes cast — good for 49.96 percent. He needed a simple majority, or just one vote more than 50 percent to win the primary outright. 

"We worked really hard, and I wish we had one more day to visit a few more folks," Burns said. "We wore holes in the soles of our shoes campaigning, and we'll just have to patch those holes and start again for two more weeks." 

Burns will face Chris Sullivan, who is trying for the second time in a year to work his way into the General Assembly after an unsuccessful attempt to unseat Mike Fair in his Senate seat race last summer. Sullivan received 874 votes Tuesday. 

"We knew all along that Burns was going to have a strong showing. But we really feel like momentum is on my side, from where we were just five or six weeks ago," Sullivan said. "After our performance tonight, I'm very pleased and I think we can keep building on it, and I think the voters are interested in issues and not just personality, and I think we'll have a strong showing Feb. 5."

The third-place finisher, Roy Harmon, said he would be meeting with both Burns and Sullivan on Friday to determine who he'd be supporting. Harmon and Burns both applauded the entire field for a clean race. 

"These guys I ran with were all really great," Harmon said. "It could have been a horrible experience under other circumstances. It was just a nice, civil race, and everyone was very respectful. I appreciated that as a first-timer. That's one of the nice parts of this area in northern Greenville. We have good people, and they aren't going to go out there and have a bloody political battle."

Burns echoed the sentiment. 

"Nobody got into the gutter and the mudslinging. All the candidates held it up. It was all above board, and we all pushed what the was best for the district," Burns said. "It was an exemplary campaign, and we have two more weeks to try to get to the finish line."

The winner of the run-off will be placed in the special general election on March 12. No Democrats have filed. 

District 17 Republican Special Election Results

Mike Burns - 1,114

Chris Sullivan - 874

Roy Harmon - 143

Tom Kolarik - 75

Randall Young - 24