It’s at the top of the list. What list? The Republican list of Democrat members of congress targeted in 2020 as Republicans look to take back the house. That is the distinction for South Carolina’s 1st congressional district that covers the lowcountry.
In a 2018 midterm election which favored Democrats, Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-Mt. Pleasant), pulled off one of the biggest upsets of all, defeating State Rep. Katie Arrington in the seat held by a Republican every year since 1980. The district voted for President Trump by 13 points.
It was the perfect storm; Arrington had won a nasty primary over Mark Sanford, former governor and sitting congressman. To go with a strong year for Democrats in the lowcountry, an anti-Trump Sanford and a “moderate” Democrat candidate for congress – Cunningham grabbed a narrow victory. This is the kind of growing, bustling suburban district that has trended more Democrat in many places throughout the country.
As it turns out, Cunningham has been a reliable vote for the Democrat leadership, including voting for the impeachment of President Trump and voting to murder children who have survived abortions. Several candidates, DC and SC Republican officials are ready to take him out.
Candidate for Congress State Rep. Nancy Mace
Let’s take a look those candidates:
State Rep. Nancy Mace (R- Daniel Island) was elected in a special election in 2018 and re-elected the same year in the general election. She notably served as Coalitions Director and a Field Director in the state for President Trump during the 2016 Republican Presidential Primary. The former opponent of Sen. Lindsey Graham has a significant lead in available polling and fundraising and has the support of much of the Republican establishment. Mace has gathered the support of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Elise Stefanik (R-NY), a liberal Republican who gained fame during the House impeachment hearings and runs a PAC dedicated to electing Republican women in congress.
Beaufort County Councilman Mike Covert is running as the most conservative in the race for the district that remains Republican but not necessarily very conservative. Covert has lagged in fundraising but has kept a busy schedule throughout the district and received the endorsement of former candidate Logan Cunningham, who decided to run for Covert’s county council seat.
Covert has gotten endorsements from several elected officials inside South Carolina and Beaufort County and has shined a light on Mace’s establishment backing. Of note, Covert is the lone candidate that has shown an openness to offshore drilling on the coast, an issue which gained endorsements for Cunningham from some Republicans in the 2018 election.
Mt. Pleasant Councilwoman Kathy Landing is in her first term, has personal wealth and has been the closest challenger to Mace financially. Landing has been a standard-issue conservative while campaigning and has been an outlet for Republicans in the district who do not personally like Mace. Landing has been endorsed by the Republican Main Street Partnership, whose priority is to elect Republicans who they believe are the most electable.
Chris Cox of Mt. Pleasant is the founder of Bikers for Trump, a nationwide grassroots group. He is continuing to keep the large group active during his campaign for congress.
He has kept a down-the-line conservative platform and raise a fair amount of money but spent nearly all of it as of his last campaign filing.
Other candidates include perennial Democrat Ben Frasier and Republican Jamison Johnson.
Voters have a duty to the state and country to replace far-left Democrat Joe Cunningham. Choose wisely.
Preston Baines is a Political and Policy Consultant from Chapin. He can be reached at @prestonbaines on Twitter and prestonbaines@gmail.com.
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