Myrtle Beach City Council election likely to have run-off as two of three spots secured
Two incumbents will remain on the Myrtle Beach City Council as one councilwoman could be ousted in a potential run-off election.
In the race for three open seats on the Myrtle Beach City Council, unofficial election votes tallied Tuesday night have councilmen Phil Render and Mike Chestnut receiving enough votes to keep their seats.
Chestnut was the top vote-getter, capturing 2,594 votes, while Render followed closely behind with 2,427.
Render said it’s a good day for Myrtle Beach as he gears up to serve his fifth term on the council. Chestnut, who remained ahead throughout the night, will also serve a fifth term.
“I feel great,” Chestnut said. “The voters have spoken, and I just feel excited and glad they saw fit to vote me back in again.”
There could be a potential run-off election between councilwoman Mary Jeffcoat and community activist John Krajc, with the former receiving 2,145 votes and the latter gaining 2,010 votes.
“There’s probably definitely going to be a run-off between the two of us, and it’s not a surprise,” Jeffcoat said. “We had seven really strong candidates running for three seats and you keep doing the math and it was not unexpected. So we run into the next phase, which is the run-off and I think I’m in really good shape for that.”
As for the remaining candidates, former councilman Wayne Gray obtained 1,756 votes, while former mayoral candidate Ed Carey received 1,491 votes, and retired business owner Charles Gasque got 525 votes.
The Election Commission will meet on Thursday at 10 a.m. at City Hall to certify the election results and determine the validity of ballots challenged in the election. A run-off, if needed, will be held in two weeks.
