James Island candidates file for town election
The filing period for the May 4 elections ended Friday with enough candidates signed up to create contested races for both mayor and council seats.
Six candidates will compete for four at-large council seats, and Mayor Mary Clark faces a challenge from Robert Kline.
The town itself faces a challenge, as well. A lawsuit contesting the town's right to exist is before the S.C. Supreme Court, which could issue a ruling before the elections take place.
Candidates for mayor said they were not deterred by the legal challenge to the town.
Clark said the town's fight for survival influenced her decision to run again. She said the town has been limited by the legal fight and that it has not had a chance to really get started.
"I am trying to finish the job," she said. "The general does not leave the field when the battle is still raging."
Kline said he is not worried that he is running for a position that could soon disappear. He said he wants voters to have a choice about whom they want to lead the town.
"I am a pure, unadulterated optimist," he said. "I believe the town will still exist."
Council candidates include all four incumbents: Joe Qualey, Bill "Cubby" Wilder, Parris Williams and Bill Woolsey. The two challengers are Alice Abrams and Carol Jacobsen.
The top four vote-getters in the nonpartisan election will claim the four seats.
The Supreme Court heard arguments this week in the case brought by the city of Charleston against the town. The city argues that a state law that allowed the town to incorporate is unconstitutional.
The city won a suit against an earlier version of the town, which ceased to exist several years ago.
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