York County Councilwoman Debi Cloninger is running unopposed for her District 7 seat in the Tuesday, Nov. 3 general election, positioning her for a second term representing unincorporated Fort Mill.

Cloninger, who chairs the York County Planning and Zoning Committee, won the Republican primary in June and faces no challenger this fall. In a candidate spotlight published Sept. 30 by YoCo News, she outlined a first-term record built around opposing industrial tax breaks near neighborhoods, slowing data center growth and fighting high-density development.

Silfab vote and data center moratorium

Cloninger said she was one of three council members who voted against the Silfab Solar Fee In Lieu of Taxes deal from the start. The Silfab manufacturing facility sits at 7149 Logistics Lane in the Fort Mill community. The advocacy group Move Silfab identified the same three "no" votes: Cloninger, Tom Audette of District 1 and former District 2 member Allison Love.

"My position has remained consistent: the health, safety and quality of life of the people who live here must come first," Cloninger said in the candidate spotlight.

She also pointed to her role advancing a nine-month moratorium on new data centers in unincorporated York County. The council adopted that moratorium on July 13, according to the Island Packet. It does not apply to projects with established vested rights.

Roads, budget and growth

Cloninger said roughly $400 million in road funding has been directed toward the Fort Mill area through Pennies for Progress and other transportation investments, including improvements to Highway 21 and Highway 51. That figure comes from her candidate statement and has not been independently verified.

She said she has never voted to approve a high-density development project in unincorporated District 7 and has worked alongside residents opposing overdevelopment in the Regent Park area.

On the county budget, Cloninger said she worked with fiscal conservatives on council to reduce the initial fiscal year 2027 spending proposal. She said the final budget cut the county millage rate, funded additional sheriff's deputies and firefighters and included a 3.5% merit raise for county employees. Those budget details have not been independently confirmed.

At a Sept. 14 fire services workshop, Cloninger praised Flint Hill firefighters and said growth along Interstate 77 requires paid firefighters around the clock, WRHI reported.

In an August Rock Hill Herald story on workforce housing, Cloninger described the competition for workers across the county. "There's a tremendous competition—that's a fact—for jobs … Even our services such as our fire department, our EMTS, we're having a real struggle keeping those," she said at the time.

What's ahead

Cloninger said she is working with MorningStar on paperwork to move demolition of the unfinished tower in Fort Mill forward and continuing to push for a new county animal shelter. No independent updates on either project were available.

Early voting for the Nov. 3 election runs Oct. 19 through Oct. 31, with centers open 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The in-person voter registration deadline is Friday, Oct. 2. Online and fax registration closes Sunday, Oct. 4. Mail-in registration must be postmarked by Monday, Oct. 5.