South Carolina H 4669: William H. Wilson, sympathy

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 4669 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 17, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 4669

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS 
BY AMENDING SECTION 5-15-50, RELATING TO ESTABLISHMENT OF MUNICIPAL WARD LINES 
AND THE TIME FOR GENERAL AND SPECIAL ELECTIONS, SO AS TO REQUIRE THAT MUNICIPAL 
GENERAL ELECTIONS BE HELD ON ONE OF CERTAIN ENUMERATED DATES; BY AMENDING 
SECTION 5-15-60, RELATING TO MUNICIPALITIES ADOPTING METHODS OF NOMINATING 
CANDIDATES AND DETERMINING ELECTION RESULTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT ANY 
MUNICIPALITY WHICH ELECTS TO HOLD PARTISAN ELECTIONS FOR MUNICIPAL OFFICES IS 
RESPONSIBLE FOR PAYING ALL COSTS AND EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONDUCT OF A 
MUNICIPAL PRIMARY; BY AMENDING SECTION 5-15-120, RELATING TO VOTE COUNTING IN 
MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS, SO AS TO ALLOW MUNICIPALITIES TO DETERMINE WHEN NEWLY 
ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY BE QUALIFIED AND THEIR TERMS COMMENCE, AND TO PROVIDE 
THAT A CANDIDATE DECLARED ELECTED HAS THE RIGHT TO TAKE THE OATH OF OFFICE AND 
PERFORM THE DUTIES OF THAT OFFICE PENDING THE OUTCOME OF AN APPEAL; BY AMENDING 
SECTION 5-15-130, RELATING TO PROCEDURES FOR CONTESTING THE RESULTS OF A 
MUNICIPAL ELECTION, SO AS TO EXTEND THE DEADLINE FOR FILING A WRITTEN NOTICE OF 
A CONTEST, AND TO REQUIRE A MUNICIPAL ELECTION COMMISSION TO CONDUCT A HEARING 
ON A CONTEST BY A CERTAIN DATE; BY AMENDING SECTION 5-15-140, RELATING TO 
APPEALS FROM DECISIONS REGARDING MUNICIPAL ELECTION CONTESTS, SO AS TO REMOVE 
LANGUAGE INDICATING A NOTICE OF APPEAL STAYS FURTHER PROCEEDINGS PENDING 
APPEAL, AND TO PROVIDE THAT A COURT SHALL GIVE SUCH APPEALS FIRST PRIORITY OF 
CONSIDERATION; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 5-15-145, RELATING TO THE TRANSFER OF 
AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS TO COUNTY BOARDS OF VOTER REGISTRATION 
AND ELECTIONS, SO AS TO REQUIRE COUNTY BOARDS OF VOTER REGISTRATION AND 
ELECTIONS TO CONDUCT MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS FOR MUNICIPALITIES THAT ELECT TO 
TRANSFER THIS AUTHORITY.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Section 5-15-50 of the S.C. 
Code is amended to read:

 Section 
5-15-50. (A) Each municipal governing body may by ordinance 
establish municipal ward lines and the time for general and special elections 
within the municipality in accordance with the provisions 
of this section. Public notice of the elections shall be given at least sixty days prior to such elections in accordance with Title 7, Chapter 13 of the S.C. Code of Laws.

 (B) The time for general elections 
within a municipality must be established in odd-numbered years as follows:

 (1) on the first Tuesday after the first 
Monday in April; or

 (2) on the first Tuesday after the first 
Monday in November.

 (C) If the first Tuesday after the first 
Monday in November of odd-numbered years is the time for general elections 
within a municipality on or after the effective date of this section, then the 
municipal governing body must not establish a different time for its general 
elections.

 (D) If within ninety days of the 
effective date of this section a municipal governing body fails to establish by 
ordinance a time for its general elections as provided in subsection (B), then 
the time for the general elections within that municipality is the first 
Tuesday after the first Monday in November in odd-numbered years unless 
subsection (E) applies.

 (E) Notwithstanding another provision of 
this section, if general elections within a municipality, as of the effective 
date of this section, were on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in April 
in even-numbered years, or on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in 
November in even-numbered years, then the municipality may retain the first 
Tuesday after the first Monday in April in even-numbered years, or the first 
Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even-numbered years, as 
applicable, for the date for its general elections.

 (F) This section applies only to the 
election of candidates and shall not be construed as prohibiting bond or other 
referendums from being held in either even-numbered years or odd-numbered 
years.

SECTION 2. Section 5-15-60 of the S.C. 
Code is amended to read:

 Section 
5-15-60. (A) Each municipality in this State shall adopt by 
ordinance one of the following alternative methods of nominating candidates for 
and determining the results of its nonpartisan elections:

 (1) The nonpartisan plurality method 
prescribed in §Section 
5-15-61;

 (2) The nonpartisan election and runoff 
election method prescribed in §Section 5-15-62; or

 (3) The nonpartisan primary election and 
general election method prescribed in §Section 5-15-63.

 (B) If 
nonpartisan elections are not provided for, nomination of candidates for 
municipal offices m