Primary election results: Who will serve Hilton Head areas on County Council?
Tom Reitz is out after just one term on the Beaufort County Council, according to preliminary results from the South Carolina Election Commission.
In a surprise win, challenger Elizabeth Galloway garnered enough votes in the Republican Primary to secure a nomination for the general election. Preliminary results show Galloway got 1,490 votes, or 57% of the vote, whereas Reitz got 1,124 votes, or 43%. Galloway will run unopposed for the District 11 seat in November.
Galloway is a 40-year resident of Hilton Head Island and a retired dentist. She has run on a platform protecting the “island way of life” threatened by growing traffic, strained infrastructure and rising cost of living.
Reitz took office in 2023 after beating longtime incumbent Stu Rodman.
What does Galloway stand for?
In a previous Q&A with the Island Packet, Galloway highlighted her background as a small business owner, having owned and operated a dentist practice for over 35 years on the island.
Local companies are finding it increasingly difficult to operate, she told The Packet. Workers increasingly fed up by the island’s traffic and cost of living are leaving the island, making it hard for local businesses to keep staff.
On Pine Island, Galloway called a recent lawsuit threatening a cultural protection overly “groundless” and “nothing more than a bullying tactic by wealthy outsiders who refuse to accept that ‘no’ means no.”
Who else represents Hilton Head on the council?
Much of north-end Hilton Head, including Indigo Run, Palmetto Hall, Windmill Harbour, several Historic Gullah-Geechee Neighborhoods and a chunk of Hilton Head Plantation are represented by District 10 on the Beaufort County Council.
Lawrence P. McElynn (R) has served in the District 10 seat since 2019, but has decided not to run for re-election.
Two candidates are vying for the seat: John Casey (R) and Travis Ludwig-Hodges (D). While not on primary ballots this June, the two will face off during the general election in November.
Where is District 11?
District 11 encompasses south-end, mid-island, and parts of north-end Hilton Head up to the “heel.”
Neighborhoods represented by District 11 include Sea Pines, Wexford, Long Cove, Forest Beach, Shipyard, Palmetto Dunes, Folly Field, most of Spanish Wells and most of Port Royal Plantation.
