Comeback bid, big names will make this Hilton Head Town Council race one to watch
A well-known figure in Hilton Head politics is seeking a comeback, and in so doing has catapulted a bid for Town Council into what will be one of the most anticipated local races in November.
Kim Likins, a former two-time council member who gave up her seat in 2018 in an unsuccessful bid for mayor, has filed for her old Ward 4 seat, where she will challenge incumbent Tamara Becker and Peter Kristian, the general manager for Hilton Head Plantation, one of the island’s largest neighborhoods.
It is rare to have so many well-known names in a race for Town Council. Council seats, like school board races, often draw novices looking to make a first step into elected office life.
Likins, however, is no novice. She won races in 2010 and 2014 and became known in the community as a champion of the arts and as someone philosophically aligned with former mayor David Bennett and current council member David Ames. Her bid for mayor, at the time, was seen in some circles as a call for continuity compared with John McCann’s campaign for change.
Likins said it was over the past year or so that she started considering making another run for the Ward 4 seat.
“It was never my intention to walk away,” Likins said. “I did think long and hard about running for mayor again, but I really believe my effectiveness as a Ward 4 representative was probably the best role for me to fill.”
Likins’ tenure was not without controversy. Likins filed a defamation suit against Skip Hoagland, a long-time government critic known for his long-winded rants and frequent accusations of government wrongdoing. Instead of paying for the suit herself, though, the town took the unusual step of agreeing to cover her legal costs. Likins eventually dropped the suit after reaching a settlement in the case. The town was reimbursed for the legal costs, according to Likins.
Standing in her way will be Becker, who ran unopposed in 2018, and Kristian, who has twice before run for public office but never won.
“I have no concerns,” said Becker in regards to Likins’ candidacy. “I am the best candidate, with the best record of success. I intend to win this race.”
Kristian did not return an email and couldn’t immediately be reach for comment.
In 2018, Kristian narrowly lost to Melvin Campbell for district 10 school board. Two years later, he lost to Alex Brown by a wide margin for the Town Council seat for Ward 1.
Krisitan is running in Ward 4 this time because his residence in the Jarvis Creek Club became part of Ward 4 after redistricting earlier this year.
Ward 4 includes the following communities: Indigo Run, Palmetto Dunes, Shelter Cove, Singleton Beach, Chaplin, Bradley Beach, Folly Field Road, Honey Horn, Jarvis Creek Club, Spanish Wells Road East, Marshland Road West, Broad Creek Marina, Summer House, Leamington.
The election will be Nov. 8.
The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette will publish a comprehensive list of candidates for all races after the filing period ends at noon Monday, Aug. 15.
