COLUMBIA - A surprise party switch of a longtime Democrat was among the revelations when candidate filing closed at noon Tuesday.

Another was that Georgetown County will get a resident senator after eight years without one because all three candidates in the three-county Senate District 34 are Georgetown County residents.

The races shape up to a scattering of party primaries for June 8 in both parties, as well as a sizeable number of unopposed incumbents.

U.S. Rep. Henry Brown's only opponent is Bob Batchelder of Socastee, who ran against Brown two years ago in the GOP primary and four years ago in the general election on the Reform Party ticket.

Brown's Horry County staff member Katherine Jenerette filed to run on the Republican ticket against state Sen. Dick Elliott, D-North Myrtle Beach.

Her husband, Van Jenerette, ran against Brown four years ago. Katherine Jenerette is treading in the steps of state Rep. Thad Viers, R-Myrtle Beach, who also was an Horry County staffer for Brown.

Freshman State Rep. Alan Clemmons, R-Myrtle Beach, is among three Horry County House members who have no opposition from either party. The others are Liston Barfield, R-Aynor and Billy Witherspoon, R-Conway.

Rep. Tracy Edge, R-North Myrtle Beach, has a Democratic challenger as does Viers. In Georgetown County, incumbent Rep. Vida Miller, D-Pawleys Island, has a Republican challenger.

The legislative battle in Horry County is a three-way GOP primary for the seat being vacated by Rep. Tom Keegan, R-Surfside Beach.

Republican Horry County voters from Surfside Beach southward along the coast, and those along the coast of Charleston County, will pick from three who want the seat being vacated by Sen. Arthur Ravenel, R-Mount Pleasant.

The contenders are Ray Cleary, a dentist with offices in Surfside Beach who lives in Wachesaw Plantation; Ricky Horne, a resort services specialist who lives at Pawleys Island; and David Maring, a retired circuit judge who lives in Georgetown.

Former state Sen. Bill Doar of Georgetown, who led an unsuccessful fight for a Georgetown-based Senate district, said he's pleased that all the candidates are residents.

"I've always thought that Georgetown needed a senator with all the activities we have going," Doar said.

Democrats in part of Georgetown County will have a primary for state House District 103, now held by Rep. John "Bubber" Snow of Hemingway. Snow filed Tuesday as a Republican after 21 years as a Democratic legislator.

District 103 is a traditional Democratic seat that the party intends to hold, Miller said. Snow could not be reached.

Georgetown County Democratic Party Chairman Charles McGill said he was surprised at Snow's switch and that he hates to lose him.

Snow's Democratic Party opponents, former Georgetown County Councilman Morris Johnson and the Rev. Carl Anderson, are both black and the district is 58 percent black, which would normally give them the edge over a white Republican.

"He would certainly get creamed in a primary" with Anderson and Johnson, Edge said, so some might see it as more advantageous for him to take his chances in the general election.

Another Democratic primary in parts of Georgetown, Horry, Marion, Florence counties and all of Williamsburg county is between Sen. Yancey McGill of Kingstree and former state Rep. Ted Brown of Hemingway.

After railing against McGill about what he saw as a conspiracy against him, Brown gave up his house seat four years ago to run against McGill and lost. Brown, who is black, also is running in a predominantly black district. Snow, who lost to Brown in 1994, won his old seat back in 2000.

Courthouse jobs in Georgetown County are also hotly contested with primaries in both parties for sheriff, GOP primaries for auditor and treasurer, and Democratic primaries for school board chairman.

Also in Georgetown County, repeat candidate Wayne Morris filed to run as a Democrat against incumbent Republican Coroner Kenny Johnson. In 1996, Morris ran for sheriff as a Democrat, then switched to the Republican Party. Five years later, he ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat for Georgetown City Council in both a special and regular election.

Republicans are also vigorously challenging for Horry County Council District 10. The Democrat in that race, Lucian Norton, has run for County Council before, as well as for state House.