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Kittredge elected next SC Supreme Court chief justice

South Carolina Supreme Court justice John Kittredge prepares to testify before the Judicial Merit Selection Commission on Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, in Columbia, S.C. Kittredge is the only candidate to be South Carolina's next chief justice. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
Jeffrey Collins/AP
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AP
South Carolina Supreme Court justice John Kittredge prepares to testify before the Judicial Merit Selection Commission on Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, in Columbia, S.C. Kittredge is the only candidate to be South Carolina's next chief justice. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)

Justice John Kittredge will succeed Chief Justice Don Beatty, who is the court's only Black justice. Beatty will retire from the court this summer.

The South Carolina Legislature on Wednesday elected a new chief justice for the state's high court.

Associate Supreme Court Justice John W. Kittredge was formally elected by the 170-member General Assembly to succeed outgoing Chief Justice Don Beatty.

Beatty is the high court's only Black justice, and the second Black justice to ever sit on the Supreme Court.

Kittredge has served as a state court judge for 33 years. He was elected a Family Court judge in 1991, and later served as judge of the Circuit Court, and the Court of Appeals.

S.C. Supreme Court Justice John Kittredge, who is running unopposed for the next chief justice, testifies Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, in front of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission in Columbia, S.C.
Russ McKinney
S.C. Supreme Court Justice John Kittredge, who is running unopposed for the next chief justice, testifies Monday, Nov. 6, 2023, in front of the Judicial Merit Selection Commission in Columbia, S.C.

He was elected associate justice of the Supreme Court in 2008.

The 68 year-old judge is a native of Greenville, and a graduate of the University of South Carolina Law School.

During his tenure, Kittredge's opinions have been viewed as conservative.

Russ McKinney has 30 years of experience in radio news and public affairs. He is a former broadcast news reporter in Spartanburg, Columbia and Atlanta. He served as Press Secretary to former S.C. Governor Dick Riley for two terms, and for 20 years was the chief public affairs officer for the University of South Carolina.