On August 11, Tom J. Ervin of Greenville, South Carolina, announced that he will try to get on the ballot as an independent candidate for Governor of South Carolina. He was elected as a Democratic state legislator in 1978 and re-elected in 1980. He also served as a state court judge for 14 years. He ran in the Republican primary for a seat in the state house in 2005, but was defeated in the Republican primary. See this story. He had been planning to run in this year’s Republican primary for Governor, but has withdrawn from the primary.

If he gets on the November ballot, he will be the first independent candidate for Governor to be on a government-printed ballot in South Carolina history. The other states in which no independent has ever been on a government-printed ballot for Governor are Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, and North Carolina.

Ervin needs 10,000 signatures by July 15. The Libertarian Party and the United Citizens Party are also running candidates in the race.