Richland One school board member-elect Artina McKnight-Coard is set to take the oath of office Monday for Seat 1, but questions about where she actually lives have surfaced just days before she’s sworn in. Her candidacy filing lists an address on St. Andrews Road, and that location appears to be a business suite rather than a home.
According to WIS News 10, community members in Columbia have raised concerns about whether McKnight-Coard meets the residency requirements to represent Seat 1 on the Richland One Board of School Commissioners. The station reported that the candidacy filing alone does not establish where she actually lives or whether she is eligible to serve. McKnight-Coard pushed back on the concerns, saying, “I meet the qualifications to serve as the Seat 1 representative on the Richland One Board of School Commissioners.”
McKnight-Coard also said she is looking forward to “taking the oath of office Monday, Nov. 16,” and in her statement thanked Seat 1 voters for trusting her, saying she is ready to work for Richland One’s students, families, teachers and staff. Her representative sent that statement on her behalf, but according to the same report, the representative did not answer specific questions about McKnight-Coard’s legal residence at the time she filed, her residence on Election Day, or whether the St. Andrews Road address was in fact where she lives.
Richland One Says It Isn’t the District’s Call
Richland One addressed the matter directly, saying board policy requires school board members to be registered to vote in their resident ward or precinct. But the district was clear that it has no role in determining a candidate’s eligibility or residency, stating that the Election Commission is responsible for certifying those determinations. The district said concerns about a board member-elect’s residency should be directed to the Election Commission rather than to Richland One itself.
That leaves the Richland County election office as the body with jurisdiction over the question, but the station’s report says that office hasn’t yet weighed in. WIS said it had reached out with questions about residency requirements and the process for challenging a candidate’s eligibility, adding plainly, “We are still waiting for answers.” The outlet said it would continue following the story and provide updates as information becomes available.
There’s also a discrepancy in how the election results themselves are being described. McKnight-Coard’s statement said the election results have been certified, but a separate report from Here Columbia said that, as of earlier reporting, “all of the totals are unofficial until certified.” The evidence available does not resolve which account is accurate.
Not the First Richland One Residency Dispute This Cycle
This isn’t the only residency question to surface in a Richland One school board race this year. In a separate contest, candidate Brian Myers’s original Statement of Intent, filed Aug. 14, listed a Forest Acres residence outside the district’s boundaries, with a later version showing an address within district lines, according to the Post and Courier. The Richland County Voter Registration and Elections office warned Myers at the time that his candidacy was potentially in jeopardy of disqualification based on his voter registration record. County elections director Travis Alexander said Myers could move within Richland One any time before Nov. 3, but that his filing needed to reflect his planned address 60 days ahead of the election.
Residency fights aren’t unique to Richland County, either. The Post and Courier also reported that Charleston County’s elections board planned to hear a residency challenge against a Republican candidate for state Senate District 41, with officials there noting they can review a driver’s license registration, voter ID addresses and tax records when evaluating such a claim. In that case, officials said the burden of proof falls on whoever files the challenge — a reminder that residency disputes, once raised, tend to hinge on documentation rather than statements alone.
For now, McKnight-Coard is still expected to take her oath Monday, and no formal challenge to her eligibility has been reported. Whether the Richland County Election Commission opens any review of her residency, and how the certification discrepancy gets sorted out, remains unanswered as of this report.
