Local
Better Business Campaigns Win Seats For Hollywood Candidates
By Barney Blakeney The Town of Hollywood June 4 elected new municipal leadership with the election of a new mayor and two new town councilmembers. Former councilman John Dunmyer upset two-term Mayor Jacquelyn Heyward. Chardale Murray outpaced all the candidates with 583 votes to lead incumbent Althea Salters and Handy Miles Jr. to seats on…
Read More‘This Fight Against McDonald’s is For the American Dream’: Booker, Buttigieg, O’Rourke Join Striking Charleston McDonald’s Workers, As 2020 Candidates Back Workers’ Bold Demand for Union Rights
McDonald’s workers’ demand for union rights took center stage in South Carolina Saturday as Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg and Beto O’Rourke stood with workers on strike for the right to a union. It was the latest display in a rising chorus in support of union rights at McDonald’s among leading 2020 hopefuls, just weeks after…
Read MoreSouth Carolina Announces New Paper-Based Voting System
The state of South Carolina this week announced the award of a contract for a new statewide voting system. After a lengthy evaluation of numerous proposals, an evaluation panel unanimously selected the Election Systems and Software (ES&S) ExpressVote voting system. The new paper-based system will replace the state’s aging paperless system that has been in…
Read MoreS.C. Legislature: “Stick A Pin In It Til Next Session”
By Barney Blakeney Despite some efforts to make a positive assessment of the 2019 legislative session in South Carolina, at least two local legislators agree very little was accomplished. “It’s true nothing much happened,” said Hollywood Rep. Robert Brown. And Dist. 42 Sen. Marlon Kimpson said not much was achieved beyond raising teacher salaries and…
Read MoreChardale Murray Runs for Town Council of Hollywood
Chardale Murray-Kornickey was born November 29, 1975 in Hollywood, South Carolina. She is the daughter of Lorraine and Charlie Murray, Sr. and the mother of Bryce Murray-Kornickey. The election will be held Tuesday, June 4, 2019. She graduated from Baptist Hill High School in 1994 and attended the University of South Carolina’s Social Work Master’s…
Read MoreWashington -“Mayoral Campaigns Should Expand Their Focus”
By Barney Blakeney Though he hasn’t officially announced his candidacy, former Charleston City Councilman Maurice Washington most likely will run as a candidate for mayor in the November 5 Charleston municipal elections. Washington said he feels compelled to enter the race in order to broaden the discussion. If and when Washington formally announces, he will…
Read MoreCharleston County Public Library Hosts Voter Registration Drives at 14 Branches Prior to Elections
Charleston County Public Library (CCPL) and Charleston County Board of Elections and Voter Registration (BEVR) are working together for the fourth year to host several voter registration drives between May and September, and patrons will have the opportunity to register to vote at 14 of CCPL’s branches. “It is important for us at CCPL to provide resources to our…
Read MoreWill There Be A Black Mayor In Charleston, North Charleston?
By Barney Blakeney As the Charleston mayoral election landscape fills, the list of contenders for the coinciding office in North Charleston seems stagnant. What’s that mean for the potential election of a Black mayoral candidate in either of the cities? We tried to find out. Incumbent mayors in both cities will face substantial challenges. While…
Read MoreGovernor, Senator, Friend – Ernest ‘Fritz’ Hollings Dies at 97
By Barney Blakeney Ernest F. Hollings has been described as an extremely intelligent man outstanding in both mental and physical stature, a man who made mistakes, but was wise enough to admit and amend them. At a time when Black political power first began to emerge in the 20th century, Hollings was among the gatekeepers…
Read MoreCory Booker Energizes Burke High
By Professor Damon L. Fordham, MA New Jersey Senator and 2020 presidential candidate Cory Booker made a campaign stop in Charleston on March 2, 2019. He visited Mother Emanuel AME, Burke High School, and later attended an oyster roast in Summerville. Sen. Booker held a brief private meeting in Burke High’s Media Center prior to…
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