Winner declared in narrow Beaufort County School Board District 2 election

Chloe Gordon has won the Beaufort County District 2 school board election, county officials confirmed Saturday.

The election results were certified early Saturday, said Jean Felix, chair of the county Board of Voter Registration and Elections. Gordon secured 2,177 votes, just 12 more than her opponent, Terry Thomas.

District 2 includes Beaufort, Lady’s Island, Fripp Island, and parts of St. Helena Island and the Marine Corps Air Station.

“First of all I’m very humbled and grateful to God and all the voters, my supporters,” Gordon said. “I look forward to working with the board, my new colleagues, and working for our children and community.”

Gordon has worked in the county’s education system for 27 years as a teacher and assistant principal at the elementary, middle school and high school levels.

As a school board member, Gordon said she plans to focus on improving county schools’ safety, their communication with the public and test scores across the board.

“Our schools are safe, but they can be safer,” Gordon said, “for our students and for our staff.”

Thomas said he was frustrated by the lengthy certification process, especially after he’d originally claimed a slim lead when unofficial online results were posted earlier this week. He does not have plans to run for office again, he said.