Pastor to challenge Michael Rivers in Democratic primary. What we know
State Rep. Michael Rivers, D-St. Helena Island, has fended off Republicans in five elections for House District 121, but this year he’s facing a challenge from within his own party.
Rivers and Shannon DeLoach, a businessman and pastor from Burton, filed to run and will face off in the June 9 Democratic primary.
The winner will advance to the Nov. 3 general election to face Shelly Gay Yuhas of Fripp Island, the sole Republican to file as of the noon filing deadline on Monday. Yuhas, a Beaufort native and former business executive, lost to Rivers 58% to 42% in the 2024 general election.
In House District 124, long-time Republican Rep. Shannon Erickson has filed to run again. She will face Democrat Shauna Bishop in the Nov. 3 general election. Both are from Beaufort. The district includes much of Burton and Beaufort, all of Lady’s Island and portions of St. Helena Island.
Rivers, a 67-year-old minister and former Beaufort County School Board member, first won House District 121 in November 2016 and took office in 2017. He’s cruised to wins four times since. The sprawling district has 42,000 residents in Beaufort and Colleton counties, stretching from Walterboro in the north to St. Helena Island in the south.
“He doesn’t just talk about results — he delivers them,” Rivers says on his web site.
Earlier this year, Rivers was elected as the chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus. He says he’s a voice for small businesses, working families and the coastal environment and gets results. He listed $400,000 in “direct funds” he says he has secured for the district, including for organizations such as the Beaufort Youth Conference and Beaufort Gullah Festival.
On his website, Rivers says he has supported paid family leave and workforce housing development.
DeLoach, 41, who was born in Beaufort and raised in Burton, is a pastor at Yemassee’s Mt. Sinai Baptist Church who owns Serenity Mortuary, which has chapels in Beaufort and Summerville.
He says it’s time for a change.
“District 121 deserves leadership that listens,” DeLoach says on his website. “Leadership that works. And leadership that understands the heartbeat of this community.”
Affordability, access to health care, education and jobs and ensuring government is accountable to the people are his three priorities, he says.
Yuhas, a graduate of Beaufort high School and the University of South Carolina, said on her website that she “has always been an advocate for small business owners and smart development.” Her priorities include upgrading the quality of the Lowcountry’s roads and bridges, reducing government waste and improving public safety.
The district includes Fripp Island and much of St. Helena and extends north as far Green Pond, Ritter, Walterboro and Yemassee north of Beaufort. The communities of Gray’s Hill, Sheldon, Dale and Lobeco and large part of the Burton area is included as well. The district takes in a small part of northern Beaufort.
There will be three other Democratic primaries in the Beaufort area, but no incumbents are challenged in those races.
Those races feature:
- Debbie Subera-Wiggin and Robert Weinfeld, both of Bluffton, in House District 120, which includes portions of Beaufort and Jasper counties. The winner will face Rep. Weston Newton, R-Bluffton. The district includes Okatie, much of northern Bluffton including Rose Hill and Belfair, the Palmetto Bluff area and a tiny portion of Hilton Head Island.
- Maja Moore of Hampton and Korey Williams of Early Branch in House District 122 in Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties. The winner will face Rep. Bill Hager, R-Hampton, in the general election. The district includes parts of Hardeeville and Okatie.
- Willie Aiken of Hardeeville and Ann Shippy of Hilton Head Island, in House District 123, which includes Beaufort and Jasper counties. The winner will face Rep. Jeff Bradley, R-Hilton Head Island. The district includes almost the entirety of Hilton Head Island.
