2024 candidates were asked to share what or whom inspired them to run for the position they are seeking. This is what we learned.

Karine Debaty, County Council – Dist. 22

I made the Upstate my home 30 years ago. The kindness of the people and the beauty of the places, with the green-blue lines on the horizon over downtown, seduced me forever. We raised three happy children, with whom we hiked all over the Blue Ridge Mountains. We witnessed and admired the transformation of downtown Greenville.

One day, I went to work, sat at my desk, and saw that the forest I used to see, was gone. In its place, was a chaos of logs and broken branches over red naked dirt. That unpleasant vision kept repeating throughout these past three decades. Gas stations, car washes, storage facilities, big boxes, and cheaply constructed housing, are randomly overtaking the county.

I am a pragmatic, enthusiastic business professional as well as a conservationist. I strongly believe that the economy of a place must be dynamic and provide the jobs and services its people need, to live decently today, and for their children tomorrow. 

I also strongly believe that part of a decent life is a healthy environment that includes smooth transit, easy access to work, affordable housing available for all, affordable childcare and elderly care, open green spaces, a healthy local food supply, and clean drinking water. 

The unprecedented growth, and the new reality of unpredictable extreme weather events, require us to carefully rethink the way we grow. The long traffic jams, the deplorable state of our roads, the disappearance of greenery, the pollution of our streams with septic tank leaks, the proliferation of businesses that do not employ people (like car washes), the impossibility of a growing number of our constituents to find affordable housing, or raise a family locally, are the most obvious testimonies of the current lack of sound responsible governance. It goes way beyond just fixing our roads!

That day, earlier this year, when I could see Pelham Road from Devenger Road because the entire forest in between them had been cut down, is when I decided to run for office and leverage my professional skills, and pragmatic foresight, to steer the governance of our county towards a more responsible growth for all, with the new challenges of tomorrow in perspective.

Kathryn Harvey Federal Office – CD 4

I’m Kathryn Harvey. A proud Spartanburg native, the daughter of public school special education teachers, community steward. I spent nearly a decade partnering with communities across the United States and abroad tackling some of the most challenging issues facing children. I returned home in 2017, to continue supporting nonprofits in South Carolina and soon became involved in local politics in the Upstate as well as the state. I’m now serving my second term as Spartanburg County Democratic Party Chair and was recently Regional Director for Get Out The Votes efforts ahead of South Carolina’s First in the Nation status during the Presidential Primary.

Who inspired me to run was quite honestly the people of this district who time and time again are doing tremendous work in bettering our communities within this region with the limited resources and lack of support from our elected officials. I’m proud to live in the Upstate and to have this strong, grassroots support that by the numbers has not been seen in the past 30 years is truly humbling and inspiring to continue this fight.

What further inspired me to run is the opportunity to lift voices in our community who are often ignored. Fighting for reproductive freedom and advocating for families is a top priority for me. It is about being a resource to support and resolve constituents’ needs.

Bottom line: Upstate Families Can No Longer Afford Two More Years With Our Current Leadership. This district needs a real representative, who focuses on kitchen-table issues directly impacting us. Not a campaigner for extremism. Upstate voters need to trust their leaders which sadly our current representative has failed over and over again.

With me in office, I will safeguard women’s reproductive freedoms and champion smart, economic growth that benefits working families in the Upstate.

This campaign is a culmination of my strong record of being a bridge builder in bringing positive change to the region, willing to do the work which benefits all of us for the better. I believe it is possible to reach across the aisle in order to get good work done on behalf of the Upstate.

Learn more about our effort at kathrynforcongress.com and support today.

John MacCarthy State House – Dist. 27

It is clear to me that Donald Trump and the MAGA agenda are a threat to our democracy, freedom, and safety, and that we all have to work as hard as we can to oppose this threat. It is also clear to me that gun violence, poverty, and prejudice are evils that must be opposed, and that people have a fundamental right to control their own bodies.

When I went to vote in the last national election, I found that the only person on the ballot for the state house seat was a MAGA Republican. This angered me; people deserve a choice. On the way home all I could think of was a quote from Edmund Burke: “All that is required for evil to triumph over good is for good people to do nothing.” 

As I reflected on this it became clear to me that it was my duty to do so. I have a daughter and two grandchildren living in this state and I need to do whatever I can to make South Carolina a better place to live and raise a family for everyone.

Octavia Amaechi, MD State Senate – Dist. 12

I would have to say what inspired me to run was that I believe a physician’s perspective will be really powerful in shaping policy that affects the lives of my community. Did you know that there is not a single medical doctor in either chamber of our South Carolina General Assembly? One would think so since the majority of their efforts in drafting legislation have been tied to one’s extremely personal healthcare decisions. Which was disheartening and honestly made me angry that our government would interfere in those decisions tied to my patients. Additionally, I am a mom to three amazing children, spanning early elementary, middle school and high school who keep me fiercely driven to create a beautiful, sustaining future for all South Carolinians where they can benefit to be their best self.

Which is why I filed to run. To improve the health of our community. That includes access to excellent and full spectrum of equitable healthcare for the hardworking people here in Palmetto, support for our teachers and students by improving outdated and restrictive policies that leave our children’s education ranked at the bottom in the nation and creating a thriving infrastructure that supports our small businesses.

Being a family medicine and community physician who has held many service roles, I always put the community first. As a Sunday school teacher and administrator, working alongside school principals and parent/teacher associations, being the chief of medical staff of a large hospital system – as well on providing my expertise as a health board member, delegate and countless chair positions in medical organizations – all these experiences have taught me the importance to care, listen, plan and act to in order to elevate and improve the lives of those around me.

Which is the opposite of my opponent, a career politician who has spent time mainly creating divisive, harmful policies and serving at the behest of their personal connections and networks instead of collaborating to serve all families and move towards a brighter and healthier future for all.

I think that is why our historic campaign, being the first woman to be elected in our state senate for the Upstate along with the only medical physician still in the running in the entire South Carolina General Assembly, has led us to significant momentum that we are only going to heighten now come November.

Visit OctaviaforSC.com to find ways to support what is a special moment here in our region in moving our district forward.

Find all the Democratic candidates and how to connect with them on our candidate page