North Augusta City Council-man Jason Whinghter has announced he will challenge state Sen. Greg Ryberg for his District 24 seat.
Whinghter, 31, filed his paperwork Saturday and will face off with Ryberg in the June 10 Republican primary.
"I felt like people needed a choice in this election process and I wanted to offer them that choice," Whinghter said in an interview Sunday. "I feel like I can go to Columbia and that I can work hard for the people of Aiken County and District 24, and focus solely on that and nothing else, and have no other agenda."
Whinghter, a former member of the North Augusta Planning Commission, was elected to the city council in 2005. He serves as manager of development operations for Blanchard and Calhoun Real Estate Co., and holds a master's degree in city and regional planning from Clemson University.
He said the main issues he would like to address in the Legislature are education and improvements to the state's roads and utilities.
Whinghter said the state needs to continue "to improve the educational system in South Carolina, which has a direct impact on economic development and quality of life."
Ryberg, 61, was elected to the state Senate in 1992.
Reach J. Scott Trubey at scott.trubey@northaugustatoday.com.
