magistrate process

Many folks have been asking about the Summary Court (Magistrate) nomination process. I’d like to explain this process and clear up some confusion about a recent nomination.
Summary Court Judges are appointed by the Governor with advice and consent of the Local Senate Delegation. Magistrates are nominated by the local Senate Delegation. The Anderson County Senate delegation is comprised of myself and Sen. Billy O’dell. I represent district 3, which is entirely in Anderson County. Senator O’Dell represents district 4 which is part of Anderson, Abbeville, & Greenwood Counties.
There are 15 Summary Court Judges in Anderson County. District 3 has 8 and District 4 has 7.
I make the nominations for the positions in District 3 and Sen. O’Dell makes the nominations for those in District 4 as we sign off on each others nominations.
Last spring, Sen. O’Dell nominated Mr. Stan Welch. In August, the Governor’s office did not accept this nomination because of a past conviction (read). I was not aware of the past record until it was revealed by the office of the Governor.