Beaufort County Democrats say they're ready to take back the Statehouse, the Governor's Mansion and U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson's seat in Congress.
More than 200 people packed the auditorium at Battery Creek High School on Saturday for the Beaufort County Democratic Party's 2010 Convention.
In addition to electing new leadership and 44 local delegates to the state Democratic convention in April, local elected officials and party leaders spoke enthusiastically for more than two hours about the party's chances in November's general election.
"Today is the first day of a critical four years in the history of all South Carolinians and Beaufortonians," said outgoing party chairwoman Beverly Dore. "The political winds of South Carolina are with us as we seek to take back the Statehouse from the Republicans and the Mark Sanford look-a-likes and act-a-likes."
Sen. Clementa Pinckney, D-Ridgeland, said the party is mounting a comeback in Beaufort County, an area considered by many state political observers to be a Republican stronghold.
"A couple years ago, people said we were an extinct species but look at us now," Pinckney said. "We are in the house and we are here to stay."
Saturday's convention also featured a panel with two of the three candidates seeking to earn the party's gubernatorial nomination in the June 8 primary.
State Sen. Vincent Sheheen, D-Camden, and South Carolina Superintendent of Education Jim Rex were quizzed on their stances on issues such as job creation and education.
On job creation, Sheheen said focusing on small businesses and addressing the individual economic needs of counties were some of the ways he'd counter the state's record unemployment rates
Rex countered by saying that South Carolina has to revamp its image to attract new industries.
"We have to have a professionally-designed marketing plan that is (tailored) to fit who we are as a state," Rex said. "We have been misrepresented and maligned by the embarrassing actions by these people we've elected as our so-called leaders."
The race's third candidate, Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, did not in attend Saturday.
Other 2010 Democratic candidates at the convention included Rob Miller, who again seeks to oust U.S. Joe Wilson as the representative from the state's 2nd Congressional District, which includes Beaufort County.