York County voters won't find the first South Carolina governor's debate on broadcast TV.
Attorney General Alan Wilson, the Republican nominee, and State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, D-Richland, the Democratic nominee, have agreed to a live, one-hour debate Oct. 6 from 7 to 8 p.m. The debate will take place at WIS studios in Columbia, with WIS anchor Judi Gatson moderating and questions from Gray Media political reporters across the state, the Fort Mill Sun reported.
Gray Media stations statewide will carry the debate live, including WIS in Columbia, FOX Carolina in the Upstate and WCSC Live 5 in Charleston. But York and Lancaster counties fall in the Charlotte television market. Here, the debate will stream digitally on the WBTV website and news apps rather than airing on broadcast TV.
It will be the first time Wilson and Johnson stand side by side as their parties' nominees, the Independent Mail reported.
South Carolina has not elected a new governor since 2017, when Henry McMaster took office after former Gov. Nikki Haley was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. McMaster is term-limited after winning election in 2018 and 2022, according to FOX Carolina.
No non-partisan public polling has been conducted on the general election matchup, the Independent Mail reported. Wilson enters with a structural advantage in a state with a larger Republican electorate. About 473,000 people voted in the Republican gubernatorial primary compared with 372,000 in the Democratic primary.
Key dates for York County voters
Voter registration deadlines fall before the debate. In-person registration closes Oct. 2 at 5 p.m., according to the Independent Mail. Online registration closes Oct. 4, and mailed applications must be postmarked by Oct. 5, according to the Greenville News.
Early voting runs from Oct. 19 through Oct. 31. The general election is Nov. 3. York County voter registration and absentee information is available at scvotes.gov.
