The view of the state House chamber from the gallery on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. (File photo by Travis Bell/STATEHOUSE CAROLINA/Specia to the SC Daily Gazette)
Republicans appear to have narrowly held a state House seat representing Dorchester County in a special election a week ahead of the Legislature’s return.
Unofficial results show Republican Greg Ford just 21 votes ahead of Democrat Sonja Ogletree Satani.
With all 22 precincts reporting late Tuesday, Ford had 50.2% of the vote to Ogletree Satani’s 49.6%, sending the race to an automatic recount. In South Carolina, a recount is required if less than 1 percentage point separates the candidates.
The 3,442 ballots cast represented 14% of the district’s registered voters. Special elections are typically low-turnout races. But the results were surprisingly close for a seat that had long been considered safely Republican.
The special election was triggered by the departure of Rep. Chris Murphy. The former House Judiciary chairman submitted his resignation in August, but it didn’t take effect until Monday. First elected in 2010, Murphy replaced GOP Rep. Annette Young, who didn’t seek re-election after 20 years in the House.
Both Ford and Ogletree Satani defeated two opponents in their primaries.
Once certified by the state Election Commission, the winner will face re-election in November for a full term.
Both Ford and Ogletree Satani told the SC Daily Gazette they plan to file in March to run again this year, regardless of the official outcome of Tuesday’s special election. So, there could be a rematch in November, depending on the outcome of the June primaries.
“It’s not over,” Ogletree Satani said about again seeking the seat. She also declined to concede ahead of the recount.
She previously ran against Murphy in 2024. That race wasn’t nearly as close: Murphy won re-election by 14 percentage points.
Tuesday’s special election marked the fourth for a Statehouse seat since the 2025 legislative session ended.
Three elections were held Dec. 23, all in ruby red districts. In the only race that day with a Democrat on the ballot, Lexington County pastor John Lastinger won with 62% of the vote to replace ex-Rep. RJ May, who is set to be sentenced next week after pleading guilty to distributing videos of children being sexually abused.
In the Upstate, former Sen. Lee Bright returns to the seat he lost in 2016 representing parts of Spartanburg and Greenville counties; and Dianne Mitchell, a former teacher with the backing of the hardline Freedom Caucus, will represent a Greenville County seat in the House.
If the results in the Dorchester County race are finalized this week, the legislative session will start Tuesday with all 170 seats filled.
Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers.
Reporter Adrian Ashford contributed to this report.
