The Nov. 2 municipal races are heating up in Lexington County.

Former Swansea Mayor Ray Spires is coming out of retirement to run.

Spires wants to replace suspended mayor Jerald Sanders who faces trial on embezzlement charges.

Spires had his own problems as mayor earlier including questions about where he lived.

He had listed his residence as a vacant house in Swansea.

Others running for mayor are:

Hunter Hackett, Council member Michael Luongo and Viola McDaniels.

Luongo and Council member Doris Simmons had questioned the suspended mayor’s handling of town finances and locking them out of the Town Hall.

Filing for Council in District 1 are incumbent Linda Butler and challenger Thomas Dease.

In District 2, Susanne Hackett and Jerome Williams have filed for the seat of Mayor pro tem Woodrow Davis who is not running due to his health.

Pelion

Voters will elect a Mayor and 2 council members.

Mayor Frank Shumpert is runing unopposed.

Shumpert wants another term because “I have some things I still want to get done for the town.”

Two Council seats are up. Incumbent Councilman Larry Sossamon has filed as has Chuck Ingle. Current Councilwoman Starr Corley stated she would not seek re-election.

Chapin

Councilman Al Koon has filed to replace outgoing Mayor David Knight. Koon is a retired SCE&G employee who serves as mayor pro tem.

Incumbent councilman Leland Teal is running as is former councilman Gregg White who served from 2014 to 2018.

Lexington

Councilmen Todd Carnes, Steve Baker and Ron Williams will all be on the ballot unopposed in November.

Irmo

Incumbent councilman William Danielson is running for a full term. He won a special election in 2020 to fill Mayor Barry Walker’s old seat.

Former UofSC professor Barb Waldman and commercial real estate director Brent Chitwood have filed for the at-large council seat of Councilwoman Kathy Condom.

Cayce

City Councilman and C-WC Chamber CEO Tim James is running for re-election against Karen Dawkins.

Councilwoman Ann Bailey-Robinson is running for re-election against Hunter Sox of the SC Institute of Medicine and Public Health and Kelly Wuest, program director for Homeless No More.

West Columbia

Incumbent council members Mike Green, Erin Porte and Mickey Pringle are running unopposed.

Casey Hallman will face a challenge from retired company training instructor Joe Fitzgerald in District 3.

Pine Ridge

Mayor Daniel Davis is seeking a full term after winning by a single vote to fill the rest of the term of Mayor Robert Wells, who resigned earlier this year citing complications from covid-19.

Wells was a controversial mayor who is suing Davis over his handling of the controversy around the small town’s 1-man police department last year.

Batesburg-Leesville

Mayor Lancer Shull is running for another term against Town Councilman Steve Cain.

Cain is simultaneously running for 1 of 4 seats up for election to the town council.

Cain has been a controversial critic of other town officials and was ejected from a Council meeting by police.

Gilbert

Mayor Donnie Cason is running for re-election against Town Councilman John Reeder and former town zoning administrator Fred Taylor.

Springdale

Town council members Viki Fecas and Juston Ricard are running to replace outgoing Mayor Michael Bishop.