Retired State Trooper Bill Rhyne has won the primary election for Spartanburg County Sheriff.

The announcement came Tuesday evening following the opponent Rusty Clevenger’s concession of the race.

At the time of publication, 113 of Spartanburg’s 115 precincts have reported their results. Rhyne won the race for Sheriff, taking 73.91% of the vote. He will be running unopposed on the Nov. 4 general election ballot.

Rhyne, who held a watch party on Thursday at the Indigo Hall events center in Spartanburg, says that his team is already preparing for his first day in office.

“We’ll be on the ground, [and] we’re going to hit the ground running,” Rhyne said. “... We’re looking to do a transformation within the agency as a whole.”

Rhyne emphasized in his speech to the crowd that he intends to serve all Spartanburg residents to the highest level possible, regardless of political affiliation. When asked what he would say to those that may not have voted for him to assure them he’s the best pick for the job, Rhyne says that his work will speak for itself.

“Just sit back and watch the body of work,” he said. “We’re gonna deliver. I’ve delivered everywhere I’ve been, and in every position of leadership that I’ve been in. We’ve always delivered.”

Over 25,000 Spartanburg residents came out to vote in the runoff, with 3,996 voting early. With 207,904 registered voters in the county, the voter turnout rate was 12.01%. 

Another election took place Tuesday — the Spartanburg County Council District Three primary election runoff. At the time of publication, Paul Abbott Jr. is favored to win the election over opponent Jason Lynch, having 59.7% of the vote. If results proceed as is, Abbott will be on the November ballot, running against Democrat Kathryn Harvey and Forward Party candidate Sarah Gonzalez.

The runoff elections occurred due to no candidates receiving more than 50% of the vote in the original primary election, which was held on Aug. 5. Candidates will now advance to the November ballot, with Rhyne running uncontested for Sheriff. 

View the certified results of these races at SCVotes.gov following the election. View the unofficial results from the Board of Elections, here.

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