GOOD NEWS: Blue Jamboree to attract big-name Democrats in October

Staff reports  |  Thousands of Democrats will flock to a North Charleston field Oct. 5 to see big-name presidential candidates as the Charleston County Democratic Party holds its 2019 Blue Jamboree.

The event, which has been growing since it started in 2010 with 150 people, is getting a lot of attention due to the 2020 presidential contest with more than 2,000 tickets already being sold, according to the county party.

Through Sunday, the party is selling tickets for 50 percent off for the event, which will feature other big names in the party,  live music and more in The Bend off Azalea Road in North Charleston.

Sponsors of the event include these presidential candidates:  Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Tom Steyer, Cory Booker, Andrew Yang, Pete Buttigieg, Michael Bennet, Tulsi Gabbard and Julian Castro.

A volunteer said the previous highest attendance was up to 1,500 people for the 2015 event, which  included Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton, Sanders and former Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley.

• Ticket info

In other news:

Halting abortion bans. State Sen. Margie Bright Matthews, a Colleton County Democrat whose district includes part of southern Charleston County, wrote an impassioned opinion piece in Friday’s Statehouse Report calling for the end of efforts to ban abortion in the state.  She writes: “If my colleagues in the Senate cannot see that, if they insist on using deceptive measures and to bend the rules of legislative protocol and process just to score political points, then they should know that I’m prepared to stand against tough odds and show the world that it’s possible to defeat this abortion ban.”  Read the full piece here.

Not so good: ‘Alarming’ report shows dire need of affordable housing in S.C. SC Housing released its first comprehensive Housing Needs Assessment for the state of South Carolina in nearly 22 years. In 41 of 46 counties in the state, the average renter is unable to afford a two-bedroom apartment, and current affordable housing only serves one-in-five low-income renters. It called the findings “alarming” and said it should prompt “legislation and in housing policy.” Read the report.