Judges re-elected; Haley cries foul

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Of 22 judicial seats filled recently in state courts, the vast majority were retained by incumbents, and few races were even close.

But it was the election pitting a 16-year seat-holder against a lawmaker’s husband in the lowest-ranking court that made the most headlines, when the S.C. General Assembly voted 87-50 to replace veteran Administrative Court Judge Carolyn Matthews of Columbia with Harold “Bill” Funderburk Jr.

Funderburk, a Camden municipal judge, is the husband of state Rep. Laurie Funderburk, D-Kershaw, who did not cast a vote in the election. Twenty-six other lawmakers also refrained from voting, and one, Sen. Shane Martin, R-Spartanburg, moved to remove both candidates and start over.

The motion was tabled and never voted upon.

Martin did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Matthews received 19 votes from senators, edging Funderburk by two votes, but lost by a substantial margin in the House, in which Laurie Funderburk is a member.

After the election, Gov. Nikki Haley took to Facebook, posting voting results and calling the election “blatantly unfair.”

“Unfortunately, conflicts of interest are alive and well at the State House. The legislature elected the spouse of a legislator today to be a judge,” Haley wrote. “Those who voted for Funderburk supported the conflict of interest. Thank you to those who took a stand and voted for Matthews.”

Haley is not alone in her view, as critics of what they consider “politics” – with at least an appearance of conflicts of interest – have spoken out loudly in opposing a system where lawmakers both nominate and elect judges.

Five bills have been introduced this year that would change the election process, each of them involving a governor’s appointment at some stage. Proponents of the current system believe this could give the governor too much power.

In the only other Administrative Law Court election, Deborah Brooks Durden of Columbia retained the seat she won in 2009.

Follow Heath Hamacher on Twitter @SCLWHamacher    

Results from family court, circuit court and Court of Appeals elections:

Seat                                           `Court                                 Name     Elected/Re-elected

4^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 2      Circuit Court                     Roger Henderson                  Elected

13^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 1   Circuit Court                    Perry Gravely        Elected

At Large, Seat 9                      Circuit Court      Tanya Gee            Elected

9^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 2      Family Court     Alice Richter-Lehrman       Elected

Chief Judge, Seat 5                Court of Appeals              John Few               Re-elected

Seat 6                                        Court of Appeals              Aphrodite Konduros           Re-elected

5^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 3      Circuit Court      Robert Hood        Re-elected

9^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 3      Circuit Court      Roger Young        Re-elected

13^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 3   Circuit Court      Robin Stilwell       Re-elected

14^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 2   Circuit Court      Carmen Mullen    Re-elected

15^th Judicial Circuit, Seat 2   Circuit Court      Benjamin Culbertson         Re-elected

At Large, Seat 1                      Circuit Court      W. Jeffrey Young                                Re-elected

At Large, Seat 2                      Circuit Court      R. Markley Dennis Jr.         Re-elected

At Large, Seat 3                      Circuit Court      Clifton Newman  Re-elected

At Large, Seat 4                      Circuit Court      Edward “Ned” Miller          Re-elected

At Large, Seat 5                      Circuit Court      J. Mark Hayes II Re-elected

At Large, Seat 6                      Circuit Court      William Seals Jr.   Re-elected

At Large, Seat 7                      Circuit Court      J. Cordell Maddox Jr.          Re-elected

At Large, Seat 8                      Circuit Court      David Brown        Re-elected

At Large, Seat 10                    Circuit Court      James Barber III Re-elected