Hower, Otto advance to runoff for District 5 Beaufort County Council seat

Joshua Hower and Mary Jeans Otto have placed top two in the Beaufort County Council District 5 election and will advance to a June 23 runoff, according to the South Carolina Election Commission. Joe Maiorano placed third.

Hower received roughly 41% of the vote, while Otto received around 34%. Since neither candidate received the necessary 50% required to win the election, they advance to a runoff, according to the South Carolina Elections Commission for the 2026 primary.

The winner of the runoff will advance to the general election in November, where they will face Democrat Lynn Gerson. Incumbent Joseph Passiment, who has served on the county council since 2019, is not seeking reelection, and endorsed Hower for the seat.

In a statement to the Island Packet, Hower said the runoff is a positive sign of an involved district.

“I’m proud of the support we’ve earned, and I’m looking forward to continuing this conversation with District 5 voters over the coming weeks,” Hower said in an email to the Island Packet. “The issues that drove this campaign — responsible growth, government transparency and real accountability — aren’t going away, and neither am I. We have more work to do to earn the Republican nomination, and we’re going to do it.”

This is Otto’s first time running for an office, and she sees the runoff result as positive, exciting feedback. She said she plans to expand her advertising and local GOP group outreach ahead of the runoff. She thanked the voters for turning out and her opponents for their efforts.

“[I’m] super excited, had a really good time doing it and met a lot of good people,” Otto said in a phone call. “I hope to win, I’ll work really hard for you guys.”

Concerns over rapid growth, development and government transparency dominated the conversation throughout the race. The Island Packet sent each candidate a list of questions, and all three candidates agreed that Beaufort County is growing too fast, beyond what’s comfortable for residents.

Where is District 5?

The district includes areas east of Fording Island Road and South Carolina Highway 170 in Okatie, south of S.C. 170 from the Broad River to Hogg’s Tavern and a few streets north of the Broad.

Who is Josh Hower?

Hower, an Okatie resident, serves as the board president for the Malind Bluff Homeowners Association and works as a product owner for a national wholesale insurance brokerage. He called for a more proactive approach to development planning.

“Beyond development review, the county needs to make strategic infrastructure investments that get ahead of the next wave of growth rather than reacting to the last one,” Hower said in an Island Packet Q&A.

He listed three main priorities for his campaign on his site. The first, “infrastructure and responsible growth” focused on the increasing traffic and number of developments in the community. Hower’s site says he’s not opposed to growth, but rather wants to see it managed more responsibly, while maintaining the charm and involvement of the community.

Hower said he also values government transparency, efficiency and fiscal responsibility. In the Packet Q&A, he said trust and transparency are built over consistent actions over time, not singular policies. He hopes to focus tax dollars on “core services that directly benefit residents.”

He also plans to use social media to communicate with residents about his decisions on the council.

When asked about the recent lawsuit filed by the developer of the controversial Pine Island project over the Cultural Protection Overlay on St. Helena Island, Hower said he supported the CPO, saying “the CPO reflects a deliberate community decision that not every acre of land is simply an economic asset waiting to be developed.”

He also said the county needs to have a better relationship with the Gullah-Geechee community and include their voices at the table in the planning process of major infrastructure changes.

Who is Mary Jeans Otto?

Otto is the owner and broker of Jeans Otto Real Estate. She has lived in District 5 for 16 years, according to her campaign website. She is a former tax researcher with Ernst & Young, which she says will bring important financial skills to the job.

Otto has a bachelor’s degree in aviation and a master’s degree in accounting. She pointed to existing traffic issues as a higher priority to the county than continued development, and also called for a moratorium on development.

The lead quote on her campaign website reads: “I am neither pro-development nor anti-development. I am pro quality of life and our quality of life is at risk.”

On her website, Otto calls for the protection of Beaufort County wetlands. In previous comments to the Packet, Otto said she supports Cultural Protection Overlay on St. Helena Island, despite a legal challenge from the developer of the proposed Pine Island project.

“If the county does not defend this ordinance, it could set a dangerous precedent and weaken the protection of overlays and conservation ordinances throughout Beaufort County.” Otto said in an email.

Otto has called for a moratorium on new development until existing infrastructure can catch up to the recent increase in housing.

Over the past year, she said she worked against the commercialization and increased density proposed on Callawassie Drive, which required her to develop a strong working knowledge of Beaufort County standards, ordinances and processes.