Dear Friends in House District 81:

Thank you to everyone who went to the polls to vote this past Tuesday in the Republican Primary Runoff. I am humbled and appreciative for your vote of confidence and I pledge to be a representative in whom you can be proud.

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By HALEY HUGHES
Staff writer

With 53 percent of the vote, Tom Young beat out opponent Scott Singer as the next representative for S.C. House District 81.

Tuesday’s unofficial results show the victor pulled in 53 percent of the vote, or 3,151 of the 5,994 total votes. Singer garnered 47 percent, or 2,843 votes. The difference between the two men stood at 308 votes. Young will replace current Rep. Skipper Perry when he retires as there is no Democratic opposition in the race.

There are nine provisional ballots left to count, but they are not expected to alter the outcome of the election.

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In the June 10th Republican Primary, I was honored to have the support of Aiken County and was pleased beyond words to have won almost 47% of the popular vote.

The Primary was a great start for moving Aiken and our state forward, but there’s still work left to be done. Today, June 24th is the Republican Primary Runoff for House District 81. I want to urge you to participate in the election, and I would be honored to have your support. Remember, you didn’t have to vote on June 10th to vote in the Runoff.

Remind your friends and family of this important election and push for them to get out and vote this Election Day. We can get the job done if we all work together.

Thank you for your support in the Republican Primary, and I would greatly appreciate your vote today in the Republican Runoff.

Sincerely,

Tom

South Carolina Chamber of Commerce endorsed Tom Young for S.C. House District 81 in a letter sent to the candidate. As the state’s leading business organization, the S.C. Chamber represents the “unified voice” of businesses across the state.

“The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, the state’s largest broad-based business organization, is pleased to announce our endorsement of Tom Young for House District 81, Aiken County,” said Hunter Howard, Chairman and CEO of the SC Chamber said in the letter. “We thank you for your commitment to representing the people of South Carolina who each need good jobs, a competitive state economy, and a pro-prosperity working environment to ultimately raise our citizens’ income. The South Carolina Chamber is proud to support you.”

“I am honored to have the support of the South Carolina Chamber. We have a shared dedication to building our economy through pro-business policies and promoting job growth in our state and region. My platform – my Plan for Palmetto Progress – is modeled after Chamber initiatives of job growth, lowering the tax burden, strengthening our schools, and cutting wasteful spending in state government. I look forward to working with the Chamber when representing the constituents of Aiken County if elected,” said Young.

Tom Young won the popular support of House District 81 in a four-way Republican Primary on June 10th with almost 47% of the votes cast. He will be participating in the Republican Runoff on June 24th.

I am truly humbled at the overwhelming show of support in Tuesday’s Republican Primary. Thank you for your vote and thank you for taking us one step closer to victory.

Tuesday’s election has shown the whole state that Aiken is ready for real solutions to the problems facing our state. The people of Aiken have said they want to stop the gravy train that’s wasting our tax dollars and ballooning our state spending. You’ve said you want special interests out of the pockets of Columbia politicians and that our schools aren’t for sale. You’ve said Aiken wants a strong voice for our families, economic growth, and further immigration reform. I’m telling you today that I won’t stop until these things get heard in Columbia, and we’ll get the job done for Aiken and our state.

We’ve gotten through the marathon and I won’t slow down until we’ve crossed the finish line. We were able to come in first in Tuesday’s election with almost 47% of the popular vote, and now we’re in the runoff. With your help, we can get that victory for the people of Aiken on June 24th. I would greatly appreciate your continued support and your vote in the Republican Runoff for District 81.

Thanks again for your help and support!

Sincerely,

Tom

Voters in S.C. House District 81 will be headed to the polls again in two weeks after the leading candidate in the four-man race failed to get more than 50 percent of the vote. Tom Young’s opponent in the runoff will be Scott Singer, with whom he shared the lion’s share of support from voters Tuesday.

After a hotly contested campaign, Singer received 2,223 votes or 38.2 percent while Young received 2,728 votes or 46.9 percent of the vote. The difference between the two candidates stood at just 505 votes in the unofficial final tally released Tuesday. The runoff election will decide who will replace Rep. Skipper Perry after he retires as there is no Democratic opposition in the race. Also running for the District 81 seat, Brad Boni received 13 percent of the vote while John Kelly pulled in 1.75 percent. [Read more...]

Editorial

A most important election for many people in Aiken County will take place on Tuesday. On that day the Republican primary for District 81 of the S.C. House of Representatives will decide the person who will represent greater Aiken in the State House.

In what has been a heated campaign, four candidates are vying for the favor of voters in the seat currently occupied by Rep. Skipper Perry. Unlike many elected position in which opposition is hard to find, House seat 81 has gained the attention of four good men. Any of the four would do a creditable job, and all four have qualifications that endear them to some voters.

All of them have spent their whole lives or considerable portion of them living in Aiken, learning about the needs within our community.

Brad Boni went through the public schools of Aiken County and returned here following law school to establish a career and life for his family.

John Kelly has worked at Savannah River Site and in the business world of Aiken County for a number of years. He serves as a volunteer firefighter.

Scott Singer has devoted much of his adult life to serving his community and has been an able member of Aiken County Council.

Tom Young Jr. grew up in Aiken and also returned to his hometown to practice law and raise his family.

All four promise to take some of the core values near and dear to Republicans to Columbia – limiting taxes and spending, investing in economic development and ending pork barrel spending.

Education is the area on which there is the greatest difference, and that is the one area that is key to this election. Education is the key to the future of our state and must be at the top of every legislator’s agenda. One candidate stands above the others in his adamant pursuit of a better education system for all South Carolina children – Tom Young Jr. While the other candidates either favor voucher legislation or hold vouchers as a possibility for state funding, only Mr. Young vociferously opposes vouchers and public money going to provide private school or home school education.

Mr. Young believes that all South Carolina children deserve a quality education. The other candidates align themselves with Gov. Sanford, who he has shown himself to be ineffective in working toward consensus with the Legislature and his efforts to improve public education in South Carolina have been almost non-existent.

Add to Mr. Young’s position on education his platform to stress economic development and job creation, and we have the person who will do well in representing the citizens of Aiken and District 81.

Published in the Aiken Standard
Editorial Board
6/10/08

Did you know Tom Young was recently endorsed by three former state legislators who held House Seat 81?