A boxing match begins in Senate District 23 runoff: ‘We’ve got 2 weeks ... the gloves are off now’
LEXINGTON, S.C. (WIS) - As Sen. Katrina Shealy and Carlisle Kennedy look ahead to a runoff, WIS spoke with both candidates. It became evident quite quickly they disagree on many issues.
While many of their differences center on politics, this race has also gotten personal.
Shealy said this is the dirtiest campaign she’s had during her 12 years in the senate.
“This opponent thinks he’s above the law I guess, he’s the one that you see all these billboards that say, I lie, you’ve got another one that says I’m not pro-life ... I have not attacked him, but we’ve got two weeks, ... the gloves are off now,” she said.
“Her slogan this year has been that she delivers for us,” Kennedy said. “I don’t know who she means for us, but maybe she means for democrats. It’s certainly not for the children she’s allowing to be aborted.”
“She’s not pro-life and I am pro-life,” he said.
Shealy said she’s running for her fourth term in the Senate, once again, for the people of Lexington.
She said being the first woman in the Senate gave her the opportunity to be the voice for children.
“Its been a rough couple of months, with the attacks and the negative signs, and all of the things that my opposition has done,” Shealy said.
Shealy claims her opponent is responsible for billboards and flyers that read, “Shealy is not pro-life.”
She also said she filed and incident report with the Lexington County Sheriffs Department regarding harassment and a broken window on April 17.
Shealy said this came after her tire was slashed. The remaining blade was found inside the tire.
She said these attacks have led her to fear for her family’s safety over the last few months. However, Kennedy said he has played no role in this.
“I’m running my own race,” Kennedy said.
“I don’t play a part in any of that stuff, I’m running my race, I’ve got my message,” he said. “My message is, I’m a conservative. I want to make the seat in the Senate more conservative ― that’s both fiscally and with family values,” he said.
Kennedy said in the last four years Shealy has not made progress in her work at the State House. He said Shealy has made promises that she didn’t believe in, one example he said, is abortion.
Kennedy said Shealy claims to be pro-life but when it really mattered when she voted against a bill that would put a near total ban on abortion.
However, Shealy argues that she is pro-life, but there are elements to the bill that she disagrees with. Specifically, she did not agree with an abortion ban in reference to children and teens who become pregnant due to incest or rape.
“I don’t believe that, and I can’t vote for something ... I believe there has to be exceptions, there are exceptions for everything,” Shealy said.
On the matter of abortion, Kennedy said: “She vehemently opposed the pro-life bill so, I think the people of Lexington saw that it was just an empty statement of hers.”
Shealy said there is nothing Kennedy can do as a senator that she has not done already. She described Kennedy as a 30 something year-old lawyer that has no interest in protecting people ― but rather a lawyer interested in getting into politics.
While Kennedy said it’s time for someone else to fill that spot.
WIS asked Shealy if she believes she lost votes due to her opposition of the abortion bill, she said, “I’m sure it did, but that doesn’t change anything for me.”
Kenndy said he encourages all voters from the primary to vote in the run-off.
Feel more informed, prepared, and connected with WIS. For more free content like this, subscribe to our email newsletter, and download our apps. Have feedback that can help us improve? Click here.
Copyright 2024 WIS. All rights reserved.
