This Hilton Head town council member is officially running for mayor

After announcing his run for mayor more than a year before the election, Hilton Head Town Council member John McCann is officially a candidate after filing to run for the office around 8 a.m. Tuesday.

McCann, 77, is running on a platform of transparency and putting “island residents first,” according to an email newsletter he sent Tuesday morning.

If elected, McCann said he will cut down on closed-to-the-public executive sessions of Town Council and have more openness among members of council and between council and town staff.

“Town Council right now is not as transparent to the public — and not as transparent to each other — as they should be,” McCann said. “I can’t think of anything we’ve been really transparent on.”

McCann is a New York native and spent 44 years in the securities industry. He made his way to Hilton Head in 2003, when he retired to the island full time.

He spent his first three years here as the president of the Association of Landowners at Port Royal Plantation.

He’s been on Town Council for the past six years, he said, but before that, was on the town’s parks and recreation committee.

As mayor, McCann promises to require fiscal responsibility, lead an effort to solve bridge and corridor issues, facilitate workforce development, promote and preserve historical, arts and cultural communities and bring better health care options to the island, according to his email newsletter

If McCann wins the mayoral race, a special election will be held to fill his Town Council seat, staff attorney Brian Hulbert said previously. If McCann does not win the election, he will remain the Ward 6 representative.

Candidates can officially file for the election until Aug. 15. The filing fee is $50 for the mayoral election, and $35 to run for Town Cuncil, according to the town’s municipal code.

Council seats for Ward 2, Ward 4 and Ward 5 are up for grabs.

▪ Ward 2 is comprised of portions of the north end of the island, including parts of Hilton Head Plantation. Bill Harkins is the ward’s current representative and has filed to run again.

▪ Ward 4 is comprised of portions of the mid-and south-end of the island, including Palmetto Dunes. Kim Likins currently represents the ward. No one has filed for the Ward 4 seat.

▪ Ward 5 is comprised of the south end, including Sea Pines. Tom Lennox currently represents the ward. No one has filed for the Ward 5 seat.

Wards can be searched by address on the town’s website.

This story was originally published July 31, 2018 at 12:12 PM.