Longtime Columbia lawyer and former Afghanistan War combat soldier James Smith is now the only candidate left in the race for a Richland County-based state judgeship.
Smith’s rival, Justin Williams, notified the Judicial Merit Selection Commission on Tuesday, Jan. 23, that he is dropping out. Later Tuesday, the commission sent out emails confirming the withdrawal.
Smith, 56, will now be the lone candidate to go before the approximately 170 state lawmakers in a Feb. 7 joint confirmation election for his and other judges’ posts. In South Carolina, the Legislature elects state trial and appellate judges.
The reason Williams withdrew is that Smith gathered so many “pledges” of support that Williams knew he would lose the vote in the Legislature,said state Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, a Smith supporter.
“It’s clear that James has solid commitments,” Rutherford said. “If the commitments weren’t solid, Justin would not have dropped out.”
It is common practice in a state judge’s race for a candidate facing sure defeat to drop out rather than stay in the race and lose in a public contest.