Abbott wins GOP primary nomination in race for open Spartanburg County Council seat
With 100% of the vote counted, Paul Abbott defeated Jason Lynch, 3,555 to 2,400.
The two men were in a runoff race on Aug. 19 after emerging as the top two vote-getters in the Republican primary two weeks earlier.
The development of new residential subdivisions was a major theme in the primary.
The eastern section of Spartanburg County has not grown at the same rate as much of the rest of the county over the past few decades. But the east side tide has been rising lately.
Residents have expressed concern about the development of new subdivisions and the impact on roads and other infrastructure.
Abbott will take on Democrat Kathryn Harvey and Sarah Gonzalez, of the Forward Party, in November.
The District 3 seat became open when longtime council member David Britt resigned to take a position with the South Carolina Public Service Commission.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: GOP voters choose Spartanburg County Council District 3 race nominee
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Hill
10 minutes ago
- The Hill
Newsom, Booker rally support for California redistricting on DNC call
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) appeared alongside Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and Texas state Rep. Nicole Collier (D) as they rallied their party behind California's redistricting measure. 'Yes, we'll fight fire with fire. Yes, we will push back. It's not about whether we play hardball anymore. It's about how we play hardball,' Newsom said on the call. Newsom and California Democrats released a new set of congressional lines last week that look to offset expected gains Texas Republicans will likely make with their new House map once passed. Democrats are seeking to put their House map on the ballot before voters this November, pressing voters to allow lawmakers to redraw the map in the middle of the decade and bypass the state's independent redistricting commission. Republicans have already challenging California Democrats' ability to put the measure before voters and other top GOP leaders like former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) have also signaled they're preparing to fight the map. The appearance of Booker and Newsom together is notable given both have been floated as 2028 White House hopefuls. The two painted a picture of democracy under threat and emphasized the stakes of the redistricting battle. 'The is all hands-on deck right now. People are going to ask, 'Where did you stand when Donald Trump was violating court orders?' 'Where did you stand when he was trashing the concept of due process in our country?'' Booker said. ''Where did you stand when he was sending out masked unidentified people in unmarked vehicles to sweep people off of our streets?'' 'I'll be damned if I'm going to continue to let Donald Trump, Republicans from Texas continue to disregard, demean and degrade other Americans, to deny them their rights without a fight,' he added later. During the call, state Rep. Nicole Collier (D) was asked to leave at one point while she was participating in the call from a bathroom in the Texas Capitol, saying 'They said it's a felony for me to do this. Apparently I can't be on the floor or in a bathroom.' It's unclear what wrongdoing Collier committed. The Hill has reached out to Collier's office, the Texas House Democratic Caucus and Texas House GOP caucus for comment. Democrats on the call slammed the move. 'Rep. Collier in the bathroom has more dignity than Donald Trump in the Oval Office,' Booker said. 'That is outrageous. What they're trying to do right there, is silence an American leader, silence a Black woman and that is outrageous,' he added.


Boston Globe
10 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
R.I. attorney general still weighing whether to fire prosecutor who told officer he would ‘regret' arresting her
Body worn camera video shows the arrest of R.I. special AG Devon Flanagan in Newport, R.I., in Aug. 2025. Warning: Strong language Video of the arrest has gone viral after Flanagan incorrectly told police they had to turn off their body-worn camera, also telling an officer 'I'm an AG,' and 'you're going to regret this.' In an interview on WPRO radio Tuesday, Neronha said he is still thinking about what sanction Flanagan will receive, but called her actions 'inexcusable behavior.' Get Rhode Island News Alerts Sign up to get breaking news and interesting stories from Rhode Island in your inbox each weekday. Enter Email Sign Up 'She's put me in a bad position, she's embarrassed herself, humiliated herself, treated the Newport Police Department horribly,' Neronha said. 'She is going to take some steps to address that in the next day or so.' Advertisement Neronha said he has a hard time 'finding and keeping experienced prosecutors,' which he's weighing in his decision on whether to keep her on. 'They don't grow on trees,' Neronha said. He said he had previously fired an attorney for driving drunk, but brought him back a year later because he needed experienced prosecutors in the courtroom. He praised the Newport police for treating Flanagan like anyone else, even when she put them in a 'terrible position.' Advertisement He said Flanagan was 'really remorseful' when he spoke to her on Monday. Charles Calenda, a Republican who ran against Neronha in 2022 and is considering another run next year, slammed Neronha for not firing Flanagan immediately. (Neronha is term-limited and cannot run for AG again.) 'The fact that the attorney general is waffling on what he's going to do about it, it shows a lack of leadership in that office,' Calenda said Wednesday. Calenda said he takes less of an issue with Flanagan's underlying charge, but criticized her actions during the arrest. 'Anybody can have a bad night,' Calenda said. But 'the real unforgivable sin,' he said, was 'using her position to try to get herself out of trouble and and threatening retribution against an officer for doing his job.' 'I don't know how you go back to work as a prosecutor after having done that,' Calenda said. 'I've had cases against her, I may in the future. How do you trust a word she says?' Flanagan has prosecuted a wide variety of criminal cases including sexual assault cases, homicides, and firearms cases. None of the potential Democratic candidates for attorney general immediately commented on whether they thought Flanagan should remain employed. Governor Dan McKee also did not respond to a request for comment. Neronha has toyed with a run for governor next year. The Aug. 14 confrontation between police and Flanagan happened outside the Clarke Cooke House restaurant on Bannister's Wharf in Newport, where employees called police on Veronica Hannan, Flanagan's friend, who allegedly was drunk and refusing to leave. When police arrived, Flanagan is seen on video saying, 'I want you to turn your body cam off. Protocol is that you turn it off if a citizen requests to turn it off.' Advertisement That is incorrect, Neronha and the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association said. 'We want to clarify that the statewide policy dictates that an officer may turn off their camera when speaking to a witness or a victim of crime,' Woonsocket Police Chief Thomas Oates, the president of the chiefs' group, said in press release Wednesday. 'The policy does not allow for an officer to turn off their camera at the request of a suspect.' Oates declined to comment on whether Flanagan should remain a prosecutor. When police declined to stop recording, Flanagan repeatedly told them, 'I'm an AG.' In an arrest report, an officer wrote he asked the women to leave 13 times before arresting them both for trespass. 'You're arresting an AG,' Flanagan said as she was handcuffed. As the cruiser door was closing on her, she said, 'Buddy, you're going to regret this. You're going to regret it.' Hannan was also charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. She is seen on the video shrieking and using her feet to try and prevent officers from putting her in the police cruiser and closing the door. Flanagan, whose full name is Devon Flanagan Hogan, is due to be arraigned on the trespassing charge on Aug. 27, Newport police said. 'She's going to have to answer the charge and then deal with it,' Neronha said. 'She'll have to rebuild her reputation, whether it's inside the office or not.' Steph Machado can be reached at


New York Post
10 minutes ago
- New York Post
JD Vance raises $4M for Republican National Committee during UK trip
WASHINGTON — Vice President JD Vance raked in $4 million for the Republican National Committee during his jaunt to the United Kingdom last week, adding more cash to the GOP pot ahead of next year's midterms, The Post has learned. The VP met with several RNC donors living overseas as he traveled across Britain, including stops in the Cotswolds and Scotland, according to a source familiar with the discussions. Federal rules allow Americans living or travelling abroad to contribute to political organizations and campaigns. The UK trip was the latest fundraising sojourn Vance has made since being tapped as RNC finance chair in March. Vice President JD Vance speaks during a meeting with Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy at Chevening House in Kent, England, Friday, Aug. 8, 2025. AP The veep previously raised money in Houston, Dallas, Manhattan, Atlanta, Nashville, San Diego, Nantucket, Jackson Hole, and Big Sky, Montana. Vance's first big donor dinner was held in New York City where tickets ran as high as $250,000 per head, The Post previously reported. He then raked in $3 million at his fundraiser in Nantucket last month. Those close to the White House believe Vance's RNC post, an unprecedented position for a vice president to hold, will boost him in his near-certain bid for the GOP presidential nomination in 2028. Trump told reporters Aug. 5 that Vance was the 'most likely' heir to the 45th and 47th president's Make America Great Again movement. U.S. Vice President JD Vance plays golf at Trump Turnberry golf course, during his holiday, in Turnberry, Scotland, Britain, August 14, 2025. REUTERS 'Last year, President Trump won an historic election victory, taking back the White House and helping Republicans regain control of the Senate and retain control of the House,' Vance said in a statement at the time of his appointment. 'But to fully enact the MAGA mandate and President Trump's vision that voters demanded, we must keep and grow our Republican majorities in 2026.' During his visit, Vance also spoke to British officials and successfully convinced the UK to drop its demand to access personal cloud data storage, which could have impacted the privacy of American citizens. On Aug. 8, the 41-year-old went trout fishing with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy in England ahead of a discussion of US-UK relations, Gaza and Ukraine.