Incumbent Sara Walsh keeps 50th District seat

A rematch of the August 2017 election ended with the same result as Republican Sara Walsh beat Democrat opponent Michela Skelton Tuesday night.

Incumbent Walsh, of Ashland, and Skelton, of Hartsburg, joined their respective political parties in Columbia and watched election results roll in.

Walsh beat Skelton by fewer than 300 votes in the August 2017 election.

This time around, the bitter race was punctuated by a lawsuit over political advertisements in Walsh’s favor paid for by an outside group. Skelton filed a defamation lawsuit naming her opponent Oct. 24, less than two weeks before Election Day.

Skelton said the ad claimed she was an advocate for violent protests against police.

“The radio ad that’s currently running right now on a local radio station is more than just a lie and a half truth, it’s defamation,” Skelton said during a news conference at the Boone County Courthouse. “It takes my call for justice, solidarity and equality and turns it into an accusation of attack, of violence against the police and that’s not true. We deserve better as a community, our state deserves better than a candidate who will hide behind third party attacks and flat out lies.”

In a statement Walsh emphasized the ad was paid for by the House Republican Campaign Committee, instead of the Walsh campaign.