Horry County GOP votes to deny Lazarus appeal in Horry County Council Chairman race

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - The Horry County GOP voted Thursday to deny an appeal contesting the results of the election for Horry County Council Chairman.

Mark Lazarus, who narrowly lost to incumbent Johnny Gardner in the June 28 runoff, asked all absentee ballots be counted after the county mistakenly sent Democrat absentee ballots to Republican voters shortly before the election.

The party’s executive committee said during a hearing on Thursday that Lazarus was a day late in filing his appeal, according to a state statute. Lazarus’s campaign stated that he entered his appeal on Tuesday.

The motion was denied and the case was thrown out.

“The case we were presenting today was not about me,” Lazarus told WMBF News after the hearing. “This was about 1,377 votes that were not properly counted and the 1,377 disenfranchised people who didn’t have their voice heard again today.”

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The Horry County Board of Voter Registration and Elections said it 1,932 absentee ballots throughout the county prior to the runoff. However, 1,377 Democratic absentee ballots were accidentally sent to Republican voters.

The county cited an error in the ballot printing and mailing process by a third-party service, Sun Solutions. The cause of how this happened is still under investigation.

Lazarus claims only 140 absentee ballots were received by Tuesday’s deadline to be counted. He also said the Horry County Voter Registration and Elections Board previously denied a request to delay certifying the results of the runoff.

Gardener’s attorney, Jarrett Bouchette, quoted South Carolina State Law statue 7-17-520 and said the appeal should be dismissed for not being filed on time.

SECTION 7-17-520. Protests and contests generally; filing and service.
The protests and contests in the case of county officers and less than county officers shall be filed in writing with the chairman of the county party executive committee, together with a copy for each candidate in the race not later than noon Monday following the day of the declaration by the county committee of the result of the election. Service may be perfected by depositing with the county sheriff a copy of the protest for the chairman together with a sufficient number of copies to be served upon all candidates in the protested or contested race. The sheriff must take immediate steps to deliver these copies to the chairman. The protest must contain each ground for the protest stated separately and concisely. The chairman must forthwith serve upon each candidate in the protested race a copy of the protest, and serve a notice of the time and place of the meeting of the executive committee for the purpose of hearing the protest.
South Carolina Code of Laws

“This statue doesn’t say the next Tuesday it says the Monday following and gives no qualifications or other limitations to when it could be applicable,” said Jarrett Bouchette.

The executive committee did acknowledge Monday was a holiday but voted 40-5 to throw out the appeal with two committee members abstaining.

Lazarus said he still believes they filed in a timely manner and will pursue other legal routes.

As for Gardner, he says he’s focused on starting another four year term at chairman of Horry County Council.

“This election should’ve been over when it was counted on June 28th and I hope it is over tonight because we are ready to move forward,” said Gardner.

Horry County Republican Party Chairman Robert Slagle said he believes the committee remained unbiased by listening to both sides and did their best to follow the law the way it is written.

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