Boone re-elected as Florence County sheriff

Incumbent Republican Sheriff Kenney Boone will continue serving Florence County after he raked in more than 23,000 votes Tuesday and defeated democratic opponent Jimmy Gregg.

Boone recorded 23,640 votes to Gregg’s 17,361 at press time Tuesday.

Local political analysts expected the race to be close because of each candidate’s popularity and the number of loyal supporters each had.

Boone announced he intended to run for re-election last fall, shortly after going public with his decision to switch political parties.

Boone announced he was switching to the Republican Party during an Oct. 24, 2007, speech on the steps of the Drs. Bruce & Lee Foundation Library in Florence.

Boone said as a Republican, he joined other Republican elected officials in Florence and in the Palmetto State who believe in being aggressive in crime prevention.

Boone said he’s proud of his deputies and the work he and his staff have done during the past four years and he hopes to continue moving in a positive direction.

Gregg, who endorsed Boone after he retired from the office four years ago, said he decided to run against Boone because things were moving in a negative direction.

Gregg had been sheriff for 12 years before giving up the post.

Gregg announced he would run against Boone in November 2007 — a full year before elections were held for the position.

“I honestly think that Kenney’s a good guy and I think his heart is in and it’s where it needs to be,” Gregg said before the election. “I think he knows what he wants to do but I don’t think he’s laying the proper foundation.”

Boone said he plans to spend his next term in office concentrating on preventing youths from becoming involved in illegal activity.

“We want to continue with what we’ve done. I feel like (we need to expand on) some of our summer programs with our children,” he said. “Any given summer, we might contact maybe three or four hundred kids. But in Florence School District 1 alone, they unleash 16,000 kids. We need to try to reach more kids. That’s very much a passion for me.”

Boone joined the Florence County Sheriff’s Office in 1987.

He graduated from Florence-Darlington Technical College after earning an associate degree in criminal justice.