‘Corrupt, Corrupt, Corrupt!’: Lexington County candidates shout accusations

There were fireworks in Lexington the Friday of Memorial Day weekend.

A mid-morning press conference was called by five members of Lexington County Council to lay out allegations that the Building Industry Association of Central SC is funneling “dark money” into the races for five council seats heading into the June 11 primary. Each incumbent running faces a challenger, all Republicans, so the primary will decide who takes over those seats in January. No Democrats filed to run for Lexington County Council.

Toward the end of the press conference, Brent Munnerlyn, who is running to unseat Darrell Hudson in District 3, jumped in front of the TV cameras and reporters in attendance, working himself up into a lather as he shouted back his own accusations. “These people are corrupt, corrupt, corrupt!” he yelled, stamping up and down.

A shouting match followed with Mark Weber, chair of the Lexington County Republican Party, over whether Munnerlyn attends party meetings, as did another argument between Munnerlyn and District 1 Councilman Scott Whetstone and District 7 Councilwoman and Council Chair Beth Carrigg.

Every candidate in attendance agreed on one thing: The upcoming primary will be key to shaping the future of residential development in the county, one of the fastest growing areas in South Carolina.

“This election coming up for Lexington County is one of the most important elections we will ever face,” said Eric Bland, the prominent Lexington attorney who rallied and emceeed the press conference, explaining that he did so as a friend and supporter of the five council members, not in any legal capacity. The press conference was under the pavilion at the Icehouse Amphitheater outside Bland’s law office.

“It will change ultimately how the county grows and where we go from here,” Bland added.

The key sticking point is between the candidates and Protect Lexington’s Future, a self-proclaimed “coalition of residents, business owners and stakeholders fighting for Lexington County’s future.” The non-profit group has become heavily involved in the race, in part looking to reverse a 2021 move by council to limit residential development in unincorporated areas of the county to four houses per acre, down from the previous limit of 12.

Bland and the incumbents at the press conference — Carrigg, Whetstone, Hudson, District 6 Councilwaman Charli Wessinger and District 5 Councilman Bimbo Jones — alleged that Protect Lexington’s Future, which they said is funding ads and mailers attacking council members up for re-election, is singularly composed of, and funded by, the Building Industry Association. They based this claim on the articles of incorporation for the group being signed by Building Industry Association CEO Bin Wilcenski, with no other members listed in the documents.

“The only way that we can have free and fair elections is to know where the money’s coming from, who’s behind it and why they are involved in an election locally in Lexington County,” Carrigg said.

The chairwoman, who repeatedly called this influx of cash “dirty” politics, isn’t up for re-election but appeared in support of four members facing challengers.

The council members alleged that the spending by the group may breach campaign laws if the spending exceeds the legal limit to support a candidate.

Bland and the council members further alleged that the group is funneling money to opposing candidates, encouraging the public and media in attendance to be on alert for the deadline next week to disclose campaign funding ahead of the primary.

“What we have is election laws that prohibit special interest groups for designating money to specific county council people who are running,” Bland said. “They can contribute to causes, but they can’t coordinate. When they do that it exceeds the $1,000 election law requirement that the state has. So what we’re looking for is just a fair level playing field for the candidates to speak the truth.”

The State reached out to Wilcenski, the Building Industry Association and Protect Lexington’s Future for a response to the council members’ comments. No response had been received before publication.

On its website, Protect Lexington’s Future accuses the county of neglecting road work, even as the county’s budget has grown over the last 20 years, to $272 million from $65 million in 2003-04, a more than 400% increase. In that same time, census records show the population of Lexington County has grown to 293,991 in 2020 from 216,014 in 2000, census numbers show.

Council members said the majority of Lexington County’s roadways are state-maintained roads that are the responsibility of the S.C. Department of Transportation. County voters in 2022 voted down a penny sales tax projected to raise $500 million for road projects by a 55% to 45% margin.

The press conference was tense before it blew up into shouting, with Whetstone and Hudson both glaring at Munnerlyn, who stood recording with his phone. He was the only challenger in attendance and he accused Bland and the council members calling the press conference, announced to the media Thursday afternoon, too late for the other challengers to be able to get there.

Munnerlyn, speaking to The State after the confrontation in front of the TV cameras, said he doesn’t actually have any proof of corruption involving council, but he believes the current council members are acting from a place of privilege in limiting development and curtailing the potential for future generations to enjoy the benefits of living in Lexington County.

“If we go to four houses per acre, what we’re doing is we’re raising the cost of homes, not everybody can afford that,” Munnerlyn said. “Would you be able to afford a $400,000 house? Probably not.”

Hudson, Munnerlyn’s opponent, explained why he began pushing for such a restriction when he was elected to council eight years ago, saying that during that time, he’s pretty much either been working to better the county or out working in his yard.

“We need to work on not packing our schools,” he said, emphasizing a corresponding need for concurrency requirements to make sure that there is adequate “fire, EMS, solid waste, law enforcement” and schools to handle the amount of people moving into the county.

He added that with an average of two to three cars per house, dialing the limit of houses up to 12 will add a lot more cars to already crowded roads, a frequent complaint among citizens and a talking point in every election that touches the county.

Munnerlyn said he got worked up because he has received threats and had to endure accusations that he doesn’t live in District 3, which he said has impacted his pharmacy business, with people coming in questioning whether he actually lives there.

He said he owns property where he has a building permit in District 3, providing documents to that effect, and he and his fiance currently rent a home there. He added that accusations he’s seen and heard about a home he’s building in District 8 making him ineligible are unfounded. He said he does plan to build a home there — and move there if he doesn’t win the election, eyeing a 2026 run in District 8 for another shot at getting on council.

“We feel very threatened right now,” Munnerlyn said, verging on tears. “I had a guy pull up next to me in a pick-up and threaten me. I’ve had someone call me late at night threatening me. We’re really uncomfortable.”

During the press conference, he angrily demanded an apology from Carrigg and Hudson for helping to spread these rumors, along with allegations that he specifically has taken money from the Building Industry Association. They denied having done so, and no such accusations were alleged during the press conference.

Munnerlyn also owns a company that puts on big fireworks shows, and questions from members of the public attending the press conference led both the challenger and the incumbents to briefly touch on recently tightened restrictions on when they can be fired in the county.

Munnerlyn said they’re too strict, curtailing some cultural celebrations, such as the Indian holiday Diwali. Carrigg countered that residents deserve peace most days after 9 p.m., the point after which fireworks are banned, excluding July 4 and New Year’s Eve.

Hudson exited the podium after his final turn speaking with a smile, telling the crowd that he was off to spend time in his yard.