Facing calls to quit campaign, U.S. Senate candidate Matthews vows to challenge Scott

South Carolina Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Krystle Matthews vows to represent struggling families she said Republicans have ignored.

Matthews, a state representative in the Lowcountry's 117th District, introduced herself to Spartanburg area Democrats Tuesday at the T.K. Gregg Center.

"I'm on fire because our house is on fire," she told roughly three dozen Democrats at the party's monthly meeting. "Our health care is failing. Our education is failing. Our roads are failing. Environmental justice is failing."

Matthews won her first two-year term in 2018 by defeating Republican incumbent Rep. Bill Crosby. She was re-elected in 2020 by defeating Republican Jordan Pace.

She's on the statewide ballot for U.S. Senate, hoping to unseat Republican Tim Scott, who is seeking his second full six-year term.

SC Democrats call on Matthews to quit race

Despite recent calls within her party to resign over a leaked recording published Wednesday by conservative activist group Project Veritas in which she apparently made disparaging remarks about white people, Matthews has made no indication of withdrawing from the race.

"I have no biases toward a certain ethnic group," Matthews stated in a Facebook post on Thursday. "I expressed my disgust for Black legislators who exhibit the same hypocrisy as MAGA Republicans. This is why I am challenging MAGA's favorite Black legislator, Tim Scott."

At a press conference in North Charleston Friday afternoon, Matthews reiterated her intention to remain in the race through Nov.

Kathryn Harvey, chairwoman of the Spartanburg County Democratic Party, said Friday that Matthews is still a Senate candidate.

"Her platform is, she is a politician of the people," Harvey said. "She drove six hours roundtrip Tuesday because she wanted to meet our community. To me, that is an advocate. It is not representative of the video."

Scott holds big campaign contribution advantage

Scott holds an overwhelming advantage in campaign contributions. From 2017 to 2022, he raised $46.17 million and had $24.7 million cash on hand through June 30, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Matthews raised $108,100 through June 30 and had $30,513 cash on hand.

Matthews said she isn't fazed at being an underdog, having twice defeated Republicans in her state House district.

"Money helps, but people vote," Matthews said. "People want solutions. When I get to the Senate, I want to make sure that I am giving real solutions and not just playing the blame game."

Matthews is also on the ballot in her district seeking a third term to the state House if she loses the U.S. Senate race.

In the June 14 Democratic U.S. Senate primary, Matthews finished second behind Catherine Fleming Bruce, but she won the runoff. Scott was unopposed in his Republican primary.

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With control of the U.S. Senate in the balance on Nov. 8, every Senate race is crucial to both parties. Democrats now control the Senate, which has a 50-50 split with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris being the tie-breaker.

Up for election are 14 Senate seats held by Democrats and 21 held by Republicans, including Scott's South Carolina seat.

Early voting begins Oct. 24.

Matthews wants change to credit scoring system

Matthews said she supports changing the credit scoring system that punishes people who have had past debt problems. She said the length of time a negative report stays on a person's record should be shortened.

"Working families rely on credit scores on everything from buying a house to whether you can buy a car, even rent now," she said. "Should we be using credit scores that don't determine credit worthiness? We also need a nonprofit government reporting agency. The three we have right now are all for-profit."

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Matthews said she supports reforming employment background checks on inmates released from prison.

"Do you punish your children forever? No," she said. "These folks served their time, get out and it's like the scarlet letter on them. I'm proposing we have a gateway system where if the crime doesn't fit the job you're applying for, then your employer doesn't necessarily see it."

For example, she said a background check on a person seeking a janitorial job should not include a prior bank robbery conviction, but if that person applied to be a bank teller, it should.

She also said she supports decriminalizing marijuana. On immigration, she said she wants to keep families from being separated and will fight to pass bills like the American Dream and Promise Act, the American Families United Act and the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act.

Matthews opposes state abortion ban legislation

Matthews last year voted against the fetal heartbeat bill that Republicans passed. It changed the timeframe outlawing most abortions from 20 weeks of pregnancy down to six weeks.

More recently in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned, she along with other Democrats in the state House have opposed Republican efforts to outright ban all abortions in the state.

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Above all, Matthews said she plans to remain accessible to South Carolina residents.

"We need a senator who's going to be here – to know what we need here, that's not afraid to get out and talk to all the people all the time," she said. "When I'm elected, I plan on having a rotation where I tag up with the county parties to see what's working and what's not."

Harvey called Matthews "a formidable candidate" who should do well on Nov. 8.

"Like most of our campaigns, it will take people really getting out and voting," Harvey said. "Watching her in action at the Statehouse is pretty impressive. We need more folks like her that aren't career politicians."

Spartanburg GOP chairman: Tim Scott 'identifies with SC voters'

Curt Smith, chairman of the Spartanburg County Republican Party, said he expects Scott to win by a large margin.

"Scott is actually one of the best senators we have ever had," Smith said. "He identifies with probably 80 to 85% of the voters in the state, the values and policies. We're a religious, Christian state, we're conservative, we want less taxes and less government and we want the Constitution followed."

Scott previously served in the U.S. House and in late 2012 he was appointed by then-Gov. Nikki Haley to succeed Jim DeMint, who left the U.S. Senate to become president of the Heritage Foundation. In 2014, he defeated Democrat Joyce Dickson in a special election to serve the remainder of DeMint's term.

In 2016, Scott defeated Democrat Thomas Dixon to win a full six-year term in the U.S. Senate. Scott faced no primary opponent that year.

Scott is also among a group of national politicians making repeated trips to Iowa, helping to build speculation that he’s laying the groundwork for a presidential bid in 2024, according to a story in the Des Moines Register.

The Scott campaign did not respond to several email messages seeking comment.

Smith said Scott and other prominent Republicans are planning to attend a GOP campaign event on Sept. 26 at the Historic Depot in Greer.

Contact Bob Montgomery at bob.montgomery@shj.com. Please support our coverage of Spartanburg County with a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Krystle Matthews unfazed by underdog role vs. incumbent Tim Scott