Spartanburg County Sheriff, District 3 special primaries set for Tuesday

Spartanburg County Sheriff and County Council District 3 Special Primary Elections will take place Tuesday, August 5, with polling stations around the county. Here’s what you need to know about how to vote and an introduction to the candidates:

Polling Locations

Greer will have four polling locations for the special primaries.

Abner Creek Baptist Precinct: Abner Creek Baptist Church (2461 Abner Creek Rd)
Apalache Baptist Precinct: Apalache Baptist Church FLC (1915 Gap Creek Rd)
Pelham Fire Station Precinct: Pelham Fire Station (3050 S Hwy 14)
Victor Mill Methodist and Wade Hampton Precincts: New Jerusalem Baptist Church (413 E Poinsett St)

Use S.C. Votes’ MyscVOTES tool to find your voting location before heading to the polls.

Voters will be asked to provide one of the following photo IDs at their polling place:

S.C. Driver's License
ID Card issued by the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles
S.C. Voter Registration Card with Photo
Federal Military ID
U.S. Passport

Voters without a photo ID can get one free of charge from their county voter registration office or the Department of Motor Vehicles. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 5. Read the full list of polling locations in Spartanburg County here.

If necessary, a primary runoff will be held on Aug. 19. The special election will be held on Nov. 4. Early voting for that election is from Oct. 20 through Oct. 31.

Now, for a look at the candidates.

Spartanburg County Sheriff Candidates

All candidates running for Spartanburg County Sheriff are registered under the Republican Party. The sheriff position became vacant when Chuck Wright resigned in May, following a leave of absence in April.

Robert J. Cheeks

Cheeks has lived in Spartanburg his whole life and has worked in law enforcement since 2010, according to his campaign website. He has served in the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office since 2016, with his most recent position being 1st Lieutenant over the Uniform Patrol Division.

Cheeks has earned several accolades, including Rookie of the Year, Officer of the Year, the Life Saving Award, Supervisor of the Year and the T.M. Floyd Award. He is also a board member of the Spartanburg County School District 6 School Improvement Council.

Andy Clark

Clark recently retired from the Sheriff’s Office in January, following a 20-year career in which he held multiple positions, according to his campaign website. From 2013 to 2017, Clark was also a SWAT Team member.

Clark has earned numerous accolades, including Supervisor of the Year and recognition by U.S. Attorney William Nettles for Extraordinary Dedication to the South Carolina Upstate Financial Crimes Task Force.

Rusty Clevenger

Clevenger is currently the Spartanburg County Coroner. He has had 39 years of law enforcement, prosecutorial and forensic experience, according to his campaign website.

Clevenger is a lifelong resident of Spartanburg County, a past President of the South Carolina Coroner's Association and a Certified Law Enforcement Basic Instructor, according to the Spartanburg County Coroner’s website.

Adam Crisp

Crisp is a former deputy with the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office. According to his campaign website, he is currently serving on the Lyman Town Council, where he chairs the Public Safety Committee.

Crisp is also Vice President and Director of Operations for Signal Security.

Nick Duncan

Duncan grew up in Laurens, S.C., and currently lives in Boiling Springs, according to his campaign website. He has worked for the Sheriff’s Office for nearly a decade and ran against former Sheriff Wright in the 2024 Spartanburg County Sheriff Republican Primary.

Duncan is a member of the Constitutional Sheriffs & Peace Officers Association. According to his campaign website, he hopes to expand the cold case unit, encourage mental wellness for deputies and improve substance abuse treatment in detention facilities.

Randy Hollifield

Hollifield has over four decades of experience in law enforcement — serving both the Spartanburg and Greenville Counties’ Sheriff’s Offices, the Landrum Police Department and the Duncan Police Department at various points in his career, according to his campaign website.

Hollifield has earned several accolades over the course of his career, including the MADD National President’s Award in 2006. During his time as Captain of the Special Services Division at the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office, Hollifield reestablished the SWAT and Dive Teams and led the Traffic Division to be ranked number one in the state for eight consecutive years.

Joseph A. Pilato

Pilato has 30 years of experience in law enforcement, with 14 of those years being served in Spartanburg, according to his campaign website. Most recently, he served as Homeless Liaison Officer for the City of Spartanburg, helping unhoused individuals get access to mental health resources.

Pilato has five years of experience as a police academy instructor in Florida. He also has experience in several specialty policing areas, including narcotics, traffic enforcement and domestic violence, according to his website.

Bill Rhyne

Rhyne was raised in northern Spartanburg County and currently lives in Pauline with his family, according to his campaign website. He has nearly three decades of experience in law enforcement and has served in both the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office and the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

In his retirement, Rhyne took on the role of Director of Training for American Services. He later returned to the Highway Patrol as Community Outreach Coordinator, according to his website.

Ric Stephens

Stephens retired from law enforcement in 2015 following an extensive career across multiple departments, according to his campaign website. He has held the positions of Detective Supervisor for Spartanburg County, Head of Intelligence for United Nations Europe, Head of Economic Crime & Corruption Investigations for the Department of State, Director of Corporate Compliance Europe and Secret Service Taskforce for the United States.

Stephens holds certifications in fraud examination, auditing, medical investigations and immigration, according to his website. He has also worked in the auto manufacturing industry.

Spartanburg County Council District 3 Candidates