Police arrested a 28-year-old man after an assault at a political event hosted by Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette’s campaign in downtown Greer on Monday evening, a confrontation that unfolded the day before the South Carolina primary election. The Greer Police Department said officers working the event along Randall Street took Blake Kirsch into custody after reviewing bystander video of the incident.
Police said Kirsch ran up to a person holding a megaphone and ripped it from their hands around 6 p.m. Monday, then ran to a group of officers and handed them the megaphone. One officer told him to return it and warned he could face charges. The victim then approached police and asked that charges be filed, saying Kirsch touched him. Kirsch was charged with third-degree assault and battery, issued a citation at the scene and taken to the Greer City Jail.
The arrest quickly raised questions about Kirsch’s role around the campaign event. Evette’s campaign team said he was not, and had never been, an employee, and said he was no longer a member of her finance committee. That left the episode centered not just on a street-level altercation, but on the boundary between a campaign’s public event and the people who circulate around it.
Evette said Tuesday morning that she was saddened when she learned about the incident the night before. “I’m a mom, first and foremost,” she said, adding, “You know me for eight years” and “I don’t tolerate violence on any level.” She also said Kirsch “was not employed by the campaign” and called the episode “very sad.”
What remains unclear is what prompted the confrontation before Kirsch grabbed the megaphone. Police said they acted on video and the victim’s complaint, but have not said what led up to the clash. For now, the arrest is the only confirmed next step, and it lands at a politically sensitive moment, one day before voters were set to weigh in.
