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Article published Jun 9, 2004
Hawkins slips past Bright to win nod
Tom Langhorne
Staff
Writer
Facing a large fund-raising deficit and running his very
first legislative campaign against an incumbent with a strong political
pedigree, Lee Bright almost pulled off a shocker.But barring a turnabout in a
mandatory recount, state Sen. John Hawkins squeaked by Bright with 29 votes to
win the Republican nomination in Senate District 12.Hawkins will now face
Democrat Leonardo Ortiz in the general election in November. The incumbent will
be favored to win in heavily Republican District 12.Hawkins, an eight-year
veteran of the Legislature, bested Roebuck businessman Bright by a margin of
4,760 to 4,731 in unofficial balloting in the district encompassing most of
western Spartanburg County.A recount is required because the margin between the
candidates was less than 1 percent of the overall vote.It was the first
legislative campaign for Bright, a former Spartanburg County School District 6
board member.The 34-year-old owner of Roebuck trucking company On Time
Transportation said he will not concede until every vote has been verified."We
worked hard and did everything we could to win," Bright said at his campaign
party at The Chopping Block Restaurant at River Falls Plantation.Hawkins pointed
to the defeat of several Republican lawmakers in primaries across South Carolina
as a trend that affected his candidacy."There was this massive anti-incumbency
and a low turnout, but I hung on and managed to survive," said Hawkins, who is
completing his first term in the Senate and who previously served two terms in
the House. "Obviously, there's a little dissatisfaction with the way things are
going in Columbia."Hawkins speculated that his willingness on occasion to buck
Gov. Mark Sanford cost him with some GOP primary voters."I pledge that I will be
more supportive of the governor from now on," he said.At The Chopping Block,
Bright's supporters said voters sent Hawkins a message."The voters have spoken,
but I think John Hawkins ought to sit down and reflect and think very hard about
what this means," said Spartanburg resident Chenel Beck, a Bright volunteer.Tom
Langhorne can be reached at 562-7215 or at tom.langhorne@shj.com.