UPDATED: Leventis is new Area 8 trustee after runoff win

Former state senator Phil Leventis is the new Sumter School District Board of Trustees' Area 8 representative after winning the Tuesday, Feb. 25, runoff election over Keith Schultz.

Leventis captured 55.7% of the total vote, compared to Schultz's 44.3% in the runoff, which had more turnout than the special election two weeks prior on Feb. 11, according to official results tabulated by Sumter County Voter Registration and Elections Office.

A total of 404 registered voters in Sumter School District's Area 8 participated in the runoff election between early voting on Feb. 19-21 and Tuesday for a turnout rate of 5.23%. Turnout for the special election in early February to include its early voting period was 4.72% and 366 votes. There are 7,731 registered voters in Area 8.

Leventis' seat on the nine-member board will be a shortened, two-year term. He will serve the remaining two years of Sen. Jeff Zell's term, who had to resign after he ran for and won the state Senate District 36 seat in the November 2024 general election.

School board seats are nonpartisan races in Sumter County.

Like during the special election, the Wilson Hall precinct had the largest turnout rate at 10.5%. A total of 202 votes were cast from there, representing 50% of all runoff votes. Leventis won the precinct with 56.9% of the vote, fueling his overall win.

The next-largest precinct as far as turnout was Green Swamp 2 with 6.03% registered voters going to the polls in the runoff.

Leventis said he worked hard in the special election and runoff and is happy that he won.

He added the school system is the most important aspect of the Sumter community and an area where board members can help to make a difference.

Running a school district, Leventis said, is a complex task to include staffing, logistics, lunches, curriculum and the list goes on, but he looks forward to learning as much as he can in the role as a trustee.

"I think it is going to be demanding but rewarding at that, to be able to focus on public education in Sumter," he said.

Leventis served as a state senator for the greater Sumter region for eight terms from 1980 through 2012, never losing an election. After 12.5 years away from public service, he now returns as an elected official.

During his career, Leventis served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force and was a pilot. Later, he served in the S.C. Air National Guard and retired as assistant adjutant general in 1999 after 30 years of combined military service.

Leventis added what he values most about the concept of the school board is that it is nonpartisan.

"I don't think there are any partisan positions to be taken," he said. "I think it is all about the staff, the professional educators and the students."

Initially in the role, Leventis said he will be doing a lot of observing and listening and wants to learn from all the trustees.

Sumter school board is much smaller as a body than the General Assembly in Columbia, but the nine trustees "make decisions on a lot of really big issues," he said.

"This will be far different from the Legislature, but I consider being on the school board will be one of the biggest responsibilities I have ever had in my working or public life."

Schultz said he worked considerably harder in the runoff than in the special election that was earlier in February.

"I did some door-knocking, but I also focused on phone calls. I made about 400 phone calls in total, including more than 100 calls on Sunday."

Schultz also congratulated Leventis on the victory.

"I congratulate the former senator on winning the race, and I hope he gets into the Area 8 seat and works to improve education in Sumter County."

BACK TO THE TURNOUT

Sumter County Voter Registration and Elections Director Pat Jefferson said she was pleased that turnout was higher in the runoff.

"That told me that the two candidates worked, knocked on doors and called residents," she said. "They really ran good campaigns because they got the people out. I was happy to see that the turnout was greater."

Turnout for a special election is always slim after a November general election, which usually has more than 20 races on the ballot in Sumter County, Jefferson added.