In the GOP race, Sally Atwater and Molly Spearman topped the polls in the eight-way Republican primary on Tuesday night. Atwater and Spearman each unofficially received roughly 22 percent of the vote.
The 60-year-old Spearman is the executive director of the state Association of School Administrators and lives in Saluda. Atwater, 63, is a native of Union and a former special needs teacher in Colleton County. Her late husband was GOP strategist Lee Atwater.
In the Democratic race, Sheila Gallagher and Tom Thompson were the biggest vote getters in the four-way primary. Gallagher unofficially received 37 percent, while Thompson received 26 percent of the vote.
The 60-year-old Gallagher is the former president of the South Carolina Education Association and a former Florence County teacher. Thompson, 64, is dean of graduate studies at South Carolina State University and lives in Columbia.
The winners of the June 24 runoffs will also face American Party candidate Ed Murray.
