Ott announces Senate run; issues include economy, safety and education

“I’ve talked with a dad that had to miss a child’s ball game because they had to go to their second job, but somehow found enough energy that night to go and get excited when they were told about the home run the child hit,” Ott said.

“I’ve also talked with the single moms that lay awake at night worrying about the bills that are sitting on the kitchen table,” he said.

Ott says he’ll work to alleviate the rising cost of living. He’ll also focus on creating “safer streets, excellent public education, affordable health care, a clean environment and fixing our roads and infrastructure.”

Ott says he’s also interested in reforming government to make it more transparent.

Ott will be running for the Senate District 26 seat, which will be vacated by Sen. Nikki Setzler, D-Lexington, at the end of his term. Setzler has held the seat since 1976 and announced his retirement Jan. 9.

During an official campaign announcement held at the State House on Tuesday, Ott emphasized his background as a family farmer and small businessman in Calhoun County.

“Some people like to joke because I wear my work boots with my suits, but it’s a reminder to me that I’m here to work for real people that are putting in long, hard hours each and every day,” he said. “These people matter and they deserve a senator that understands and values them.”

Ott said it has been an honor to represent House District 93 since 2013. The district includes all of Calhoun County and portions of Orangeburg and Lexington counties.

He was joined by family, friends and representatives from electric cooperatives at the announcement. His campaign will highlight his role in reforming co-op policy to be more transparent and his record of supporting public education.

The people of the Senate 26 District deserve a “workhorse, not a show horse,” he said.

“A lot of the time, the people that are in that building cast votes while forgetting that those votes actually impact the lives of real people,” he said, indicating the State House. “They’re more concerned about cameras and the glory and what that vote means for them when, in reality, the votes they cast might mean that a child goes hungry, someone has to go to work sick or has to choose between the electric bill or their medicine.”

“We as elected officials should always acknowledge the weight of these votes, because they all matter,” he said.

Ott said he felt compelled to run for the redrawn district after learning Setzler, who he called one of his political mentors, was retiring.

“Senator Setzler has always done it the right way,” Ott said. “He showed us that working together is what moves us forward and I’m forever grateful for his leadership. The people of this district recognize hard work, real work.”

District 26 currently covers portions of Aiken, Calhoun, Lexington and Saluda counties. Due to redistricting following the 2020 U.S. Census, the district has been redrawn to include portions of Lexington County and larger tracts of Calhoun and Richland in the next election.

The redistricting also encouraged him to run, Ott said.

“It’s a very interesting district,” he said. “I like to tell people we’ve got everything in this district from cornfields to high rises. And I think it’s going to take somebody who’s willing to get out there amongst the people, to work hard and knock on the doors and actually talk with real people. I understand what the needs of this district are, and that’s what I’m willing to do. So now is the right time.”

Also due to the redistricting, Setzler’s district will overlap with that of Sen. Dick Harpootlian, D-Richland, starting next term.

Harpootlian, a prominent attorney, announced he would run for the empty seat on Jan. 11.

Harpootlian welcomed Ott to the race on Twitter last week after Ott filed paperwork indicating he might run for the seat.

“I look forward to discussing our stark differences on issues including your radical belief that women shouldn’t have the freedom to make their own healthcare decisions,” Harpootlian said in a post.

Ott broke with House Democrats in 2021 to vote for the state’s current abortion law, which allows abortion up to the time a fetal heartbeat can be detected, usually around six weeks. He has voted against stricter bills banning abortion entirely.

Ott said at the announcement Tuesday he “welcomes the discussion” and that abortion has been used as a wedge issue by both parties.

“I’ve been very consistent and I stand on my history on supporting women’s health against anyone’s,” he said.

Harpootlian has received endorsements from Congressman Jim Clyburn and Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott.

Filing for state and local offices begins March 16 and ends March 30. The primary for the seat will be held on June 11.

Ott confirmed Tuesday he does not intend to run for re-election to his House seat at the same time he runs for Senate.

“I’m focused on running and winning this election,” he said. “I don’t think that that’s necessarily the right way to go about doing things. I know that some people have in the past, but I know that good people are going to step up for House District 93 just like I’m stepping up for Senate District 26.”

Despite being held by a Democrat for 48 years, the Senate 26 seat has become more competitive for Republicans recently.

Setzler’s share of the vote has decreased each election cycle from 63% in 2008 to 54% in 2020, according to the state election commission. The retiring senator markets himself as a conservative on his website and campaign materials.

The district could become more favorable to Ott with the redistricting. Strong Republican areas in Aiken and Lexington counties will be moved out of the district, while Democratic leaning portions of Lexington will remain and portions of Democratic-leaning Columbia in Richland County and Ott’s home turf in Calhoun County will be added.

Ott said he plans to follow in Setzler’s footsteps in representing the district.

“Senator Setzler has set the mold, set the model for what this district wants and the representation that this district needs,” he said.

Ott won the House seat in a special election after his father, Harry L. Ott Jr., resigned in 2013.

Ott has only been challenged twice in the five House elections since.

He posted victories over Republican candidates with 66% and 61% of the vote in 2018 and 2022, respectively. He ran unopposed in 2014, 2016 and 2020, winning 97% to 99% of the vote each time.

Before being elected to the State House, Ott served as town administrator for the towns of Elloree, North and Neeses and as a lobbyist for South Carolina Farm Bureau from 2004 to 2013. He stepped down from his lobbyist position to assume his House seat.

He has a bachelor’s degree in English from Clemson University and a master of public administration from the University of South Carolina. He is a father of two.

He currently serves on the House committees on Labor, Commerce and Industry and Legislative Oversight.