Air Force Reserve pilot and West Ashley real estate agent Ed Sutton will announce his campaign for a new state Senate district for the Charleston area Saturday at the annual Blue Jamboree, an annual local Democratic Party rally.
“I’m a persistent son of a bitch,” Sutton told the Charleston City Paper. “You have to be in this state, especially as a Democrat, to get anything done.”
Thanks to political redistricting in 2021, Charleston’s population growth prompted the move of a solidly Democratic district from Columbia to the Lowcountry. The new seat, currently held by S.C. Sen. Dick Harpootlian, D-Richland, covers a large swath of West Ashley and parts of Charleston and James Island.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Sutton said. “I can’t remember the last time we gained a Senate seat. This particular one will be a blue seat, with a 19-point Democratic advantage. It’s an exciting opportunity.
“It’s also pretty compact for a Senate seat,” he added. “You look at some of them that are an hour-and-a-half to drive across the whole district. But here, the needs are very similar from one side to the other — it’s traffic, it’s flooding, it’s housing.”
Sutton, who garnered 44% of the vote in a 2020 election for S.C. House District 114, has been active in local political circles in an effort to keep his profile visible. He said his background as an Air Force Reserve pilot and more recently as a commercial real estate agent and developer gives him the tenacity and a strong position to advocate for the needs of the community. He is particularly associated with rehabilitation of North Charleston’s Reynolds Avenue area.
“What I do is bring these old buildings back online, think the old naval base in North Charleston — it’s not easy,” he said. “Trying to get folks to see the opportunities and the vision — our issues are not partisan. Flooding doesn’t care about your political affiliation. Congestion affects us all the same. We have to turn a page from this national bitterness that has our country divided.”
Sutton added that the Democratic Party has an opportunity — and a need — to better define the party’s message and goals in 2024.
“It can’t be a culture war,” he said. “It has to be about what we do, the politics we pursue — they help people.”
Sutton said he expects endorsements from several county leaders and city officials from across the Lowcountry on Saturday.
“I’ve been very active in the community pushing for smart growth policy, so hopefully it will be a really strong out-the-gate launch,” he said.
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