Sources: Republicans will vote Jan. 19

S.C. Republican Party chairman Katon Dawson is expected to announce Thursday that the 2008 S.C. presidential primary will be Jan. 19, sources close to the party and campaigns told The State.

Dawson will be in Concord, N.H., on Thursday, where he will officially announce the date at a news conference, S.C. GOP executive director Hogan Gidley said.

Efforts to reach Dawson were unsuccessful Wednesday.
New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner and other Granite State officials will join Dawson at the 11 a.m. news conference from the New Hampshire State House.

Legislation adopted by the S.C. General Assembly this year requires the state to fund and operate the primaries. But Chris Whitmire, a spokesman for the State Election Commission, said that the agency has not been given a date for the GOP primary.
South Carolina Democrats will hold their primary Jan. 29.

Cindy Costa, a S.C. Republican national committee member, said she did know that Dawson was having a news conference to announce the date.

She said the state party’s executive committee was meeting on Saturday.

“I’m just kind of surprised,” Costa said, adding that Dawson is a “great chairman.”

Costa said the Republican National Committee had set a Sept. 4 deadline for state’s to set their primary or caucus dates.

South Carolina’s Republican primary was tentatively scheduled for Feb. 2, but Dawson had vowed to make the S.C. primary earlier after Florida set its primary for Jan. 29.

— AARON GOULD SHEININ

Comments

[Bob]

None of the candidates in the two major parties appeal to me. When will we get a "none of the above" vote on the ballot?

[Hiwalani]

I really want to know some information but you dont provide alot of information.