Mike Burns won election to South Carolina House of Representatives District 17 Tuesday night.
Burns received just over 800 votes with a dozen write-ins submitted.
Tom Corbin sought re-election for House District 17 and then filed for contention for the Senate race, winning both offices in the November election. He resigned the House seat necessitating the special election in January
Burns came within one vote of winning the GOP primary without a runoff in a five-candidate race. Two weeks later Burns won the runoff against Chris Sullivan, garnering 54.9 percent of the vote.
Burns issued the following statement Tuesday night after his election win:
“I am thankful to the people of northern Greenville County for showing their confidence in me by sending me to Columbia as their representative. I am especially grateful that many, many people went to the polls three times in seven weeks to show their support.
“I want to thank my wife, Anne, my other family members and my many friends and neighbors who spent untold hours volunteering on behalf of my campaign.
“There are many important issues facing our state. I regret that the election process has left the people of northern Greenville County without a voice in the House while important legislation has been considered. I look forward to getting involved in the legislative process as soon as possible.
“When I announced my candidacy for this position in November I said I intended to bring a common sense approach to state government. My commitment to that has not changed.
“As a businessman I know the positive economic impact new business can have on our state. I want to make South Carolina a friendly environment for new and existing businesses.
“Tax relief, judicial reform and wise stewardship of the people’s money also rank high on my list of priorities. I look forward to working with other like-minded representatives to streamline how our government operates.
“With God’s help, I intend to do my best to be the best representative possible for the people of S.C. House District 17 and all of South Carolina.”