Brown says he will run

MONCKS CORNER -- U.S. Rep. Henry Brown told a packed room of supporters Friday that he is entering the race for Berkeley County supervisor.

The announcement comes less than three months after Brown said he was not going to run again for Congress largely because of the stress of travel back and forth to Washington, D.C. The 74-year-old Republican insists he has a lot of energy to invest in the supervisor role.

"I just wanted to come home," he said.

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Brown brings a massive warchest -- estimated to be about $750,000 -- into a crowded field for the Republican nomination.

Among the other candidates is incumbent Supervisor Dan Davis, a friend of Brown's, who has said he intends to run for a second term. Brown said the two discussed his candidacy.

"Well, you know, he wasn't happy with the fact that I'm running," Brown said to crowd laughter. "But I explained to him why I was running. I certainly wasn't trying to hide anything. But I'm telling you, my love for this county rises above my love of friendship for an individual."

Brown criticized Davis' administration for redirecting a portion of money from a 1-cent local option sales tax that was intended as a credit for residents' property taxes and using it toward capital improvement and economic development projects.

"This administration here, they raised taxes under the worst economic times that we've seen in a long time," he said.

Davis, who did not attend the announcement, defended his administration. "I think it's curious with the county in the best financial shape it's been in years," Davis said.

No Democrats have announced their intention to file in the race.

The other three candidates -- Hanahan Mayor Minnie Blackwell, Berkeley County School Board member Terry Hardesty and flea market owner Jean Woods -- all said they are still in the running as of right now. Hardesty said he intends to make an announcement about the status of his candidacy this morning.

Editor's note: Earlier published versions of this story gave the wrong spelling for Jean Woods. The Post and Courier regrets the error.