Ed Sutton
Ed Sutton (Democratic Party) is a member of the South Carolina State Senate, representing District 20. He assumed office on November 11, 2024. His current term ends on November 13, 2028.
Sutton (Democratic Party) ran for election to the South Carolina State Senate to represent District 20. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Sutton completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Ed Sutton was born in Chicago, Illinois. He began serving in the United States Air Force in 2006. He earned a high school diploma from Gilbert High School, graduated from The Citadel in 2006, and received a master's degree from Air Command and Staff College in 2014. His professional experience includes working as a pilot and in residential and commercial real estate.[1][2]
Elections
2024
See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for South Carolina State Senate District 20
Ed Sutton defeated Kendal Ludden in the general election for South Carolina State Senate District 20 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ed Sutton (D)  | 73.4 | 31,418 |
 | Kendal Ludden (L) | 26.1 | 11,165 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 209 | ||
| Total votes: 42,792 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Ed Sutton advanced from the Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 20.
Convention
Convention for South Carolina State Senate District 20
Kendal Ludden advanced from the convention for South Carolina State Senate District 20 on May 4, 2024.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | Kendal Ludden (L) |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Sutton in this election.
2020
See also: South Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114
Incumbent Lin Bennett defeated Ed Sutton and Brad Jayne in the general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Lin Bennett (R) | 53.0 | 13,039 |
| Ed Sutton (D) | 44.1 | 10,855 | |
 | Brad Jayne (Alliance Party of South Carolina) | 2.9 | 705 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 21 | ||
| Total votes: 24,620 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Ed Sutton advanced from the Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Lin Bennett advanced from the Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114.
Alliance Party of South Carolina convention
Alliance Party of South Carolina convention for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114
Brad Jayne advanced from the Alliance Party of South Carolina convention for South Carolina House of Representatives District 114 on April 18, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | Brad Jayne (Alliance Party of South Carolina) |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ed Sutton completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Sutton's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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- Whether you’ve lived here your whole life, or you’re new to the district, you know that our Lowcountry infrastructure leaves a lot to be desired. Commutes are getting longer, city streets are flooding more, and our public transit system is underutilized. I know investing in our community’s infrastructure is critical for its short-term stability and long-term success. This means reducing traffic and congestion on our roads with data-driven strategies, halting poorly planned construction in areas that flood and building resilient landscape features to give stormwater a place to go, and enhancing existing public transit options while exploring more.
- Housing is a basic human right. Anyone who works 40 hours a week deserves a quality roof over their head and a safe community to raise a family. However, that fundamental American dream is out of reach for many workers. The State Legislature has a big role in incentivizing the type of housing we build, and we must realize we are playing catch up. I will be a leader in the State Senate when it comes to housing advocacy.
- I’m a fierce believer in the transformative power of public education, and I’m running to make sure that all South Carolinian students have access to the education they need to become successful community leaders, business owners, and citizens of this great state. Currently, our school system is badly broken. We sit 43rd in education according to US News’ national ranking, with just 38% of residents holding college degrees. Teachers are leaving our schools (and in some cases, the profession entirely) in droves because of low pay, poor classroom conditions and unnecessarily partisan school boards. Our kids aren’t getting the professional attention & expertise they need to develop as students.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2020
Ed Sutton completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Sutton's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Ed is also the owner of a development company focused on creating commercial opportunities in the Lowcountry. His experience overseas taught him the importance of being a long-term, reliable partner to communities in need, Ed is the founder of the Reynolds Avenue Merchants Association, and works with several community advocacy organizations.
Ed is running for State Representative because his life-learned values - honesty, service, hard work, vision - have convinced him that District 114 and South Carolina deserve better than the status quo. Ed and his wife Aimee and their young son Tripp have put down roots in West Ashley. Leading the Lowcountry to a brighter, more resilient future isn't a political slogan for Sutton - it's a personal mission. And as always, he's ready to serve.
- Service
- Leadership
- Impact
Rebuilding our infrastructure. As a legislator, Ed will be committed to rebuilding our roads and bridges, including making the Cosgrove Bridge safer and more pedestrian friendly. He'll also work with local community organizations to support the building of bike-friendly infrastructure so that people can have safe access between Downtown and West Ashley.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of South Carolina scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate South Carolina State Senate District 20 |
Personal |
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dick Harpootlian (D) |
South Carolina State Senate District 20 2024-Present |
Succeeded by - |
