U.S. Rep. Henry Brown easily defeated challenger Bob Batchelder in the Republican primary for 1st Congressional District.

With 75 percent of precincts reporting, Brown led with 83 percent of the vote to Batchelder's 17 percent.

In Horry County, Brown had 81 percent and Batchelder had 19 percent. Brown received 3,482 votes in Georgetown County to Batchelder's 775.

Brown, first elected to the U.S. House in 2000, faces no Democratic challenger in November; James Dunn of Garden City Beach has filed to run against him as a Green Party candidate.

Brown, 68, of Hanahan, ran on his record and said he had worked hard for the district. He said he brought in the first money ever allocated to Interstate 73, and he would work to bring in more. He is a member of the Transportation Committee that helps decide how to spend road money.

Brown also said his work to build coalitions and friendships with the people who make decisions on money for roads, beach renourishment, harbor and waterway dredging has helped the district.

He has called himself the workhorse and pointed to his years on Hanahan City Council and in the state House of Representatives before being elected to Congress. In the S.C. House, he spent six years as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.

Socastee resident Batchelder, 53, ran four years ago for the seat under the Reform Party banner. He switched to the GOP a year later, then ran against Brown two years ago.