Haskell, Felder and Kellems win Aiken County Council Republican primary races

Jun. 15—Republicans faced off in three Aiken County Council primary election races Tuesday, and Sandy Haskell, Mike Kellems and Ron Felder were the winners, according to the unofficial results.

District 5

In District 5, Haskell, the incumbent, easily defeated challenger Kurt Mueller.

Haskell received 646 votes, which represented 63.58% of the 1,016 total reported. Mueller's share was 370 votes or 36.42%.

"I would like to thank the citizens in District 5 for having faith in me," Haskell said. "That's straight and to the point. I don't waste words."

When asked to describe his campaign, Haskell said: "I went from door to door. I had a list of Republican voters that I went calling on, voters that had a history of voting consistently.

"The main thing was just to present what I represent and let them make the decision," he concluded. "I think they made a great decision."

Haskell has served on Aiken County Council since 2009, when he won a special election. During that time, he was the vice chairman for three years.

Haskell currently is the chairman of County Council's Judicial and Public Safety Committee.

Mueller is a certified financial planner and a certified private wealth adviser.

District 5 is in southwestern Aiken County in the Belvedere, North Augusta areas.

District 2

Kellems' victory over Russ Tony Ferrara in District 2 was a narrow one. He received 1,002 votes, which represented 53.61% of the 1,869 total reported.

Ferrara's share was 867 or 46.39%.

"First, I want to thank God for this opportunity and blessing," said Kellems. "Without him, this would not be possible. I also want to thank everyone that assisted me in this part of the campaign. Your hard work and dedication is very much appreciated."

In addition, Kellems described the opportunity to represent District 2 on County Council as "an honor."

Kellems works for BK All American Company in a project management and construction safety role.

He has been the chief of the New Ellenton Fire Department for 14 years and a member of the department for more than 30 years.

Ferrara, a retired nuclear engineer, is a former Aiken County Council member. He currently serves on the Aiken County Board of Assessment Appeals.

District 2 incumbent Camille Furgiuele, a Republican, announced earlier this year that she would not seek a third term.

New Ellenton, Jackson and part of Aiken are in District 2.

District 1

Felder cruised to victory over Melinda Starnes in District 1, receiving 956 votes, which represented 64.90% of the 1,473 total reported.

Starnes' share was 517 or 35.10%.

"First of all, I would like to thank all my supporters who went out and worked very hard for the campaign," Felder said. "I also want to thank my wife for putting up with me for the last year campaigning and all the people in our inner circle who worked to make this happen.

"My first priority is to meet with all the local officials (in District 1) — mayors and councils — to address the concerns in their municipalities."

Felder is a ServiceMaster Clean franchise owner and a county constable. He also has been a police officer and a volunteer fireman.

Starnes, who is retired, has a background human resources and health care. She also is active as a volunteer.

District 1 incumbent, Kathy Rawls, who is a Republican, didn't seek reelection.

In terms of land area, District 1 is Aiken County's largest district and covers much of the county's northern half.

Wagener, Salley and Perry are in District 1.