Who is the Chester County Clerk of Court?

Betty Jo Lawson is the Clerk of Court of Chester County, South Carolina.

Who is the Chester County Coroner?

Terry Tinker is the Coroner of Chester County, South Carolina.

Who is the Chester County Probate Judge?

Terri Zion is the Probate Judge of Chester County, South Carolina.

Who is the Chester County Sheriff?

Max Dorsey is the Sheriff of Chester County, South Carolina.

Who are the Chester County commissioners?

Peter B. Wilson (County Council Member); John Agee (County Council Member); Roy Brunson (County Council Member); William Killian (County Council Member); Erin Mosley (County Council Member); Bobby Raines (County Council Member).

What is the population of Chester County?

About 32,182 people, with a median age of 42.4; the median household income is $52,458 and 18.7% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Chester County?

4.9% in September 2026 (preliminary): 728 people unemployed in a labor force of 14,759, against 5.7% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).

How many local governments are there in Chester County?

14 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 5 municipal, 1 school district and 7 special district governments.

What cities and towns are in Chester County?

1: Chester. Each has its own page with its mayor and council.

Chester County, SC elected officials: county council, sheriff, school board and cities

Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Chester County: 11 seats on 6 elected bodies.

County Council

Chester County Council

Office	Who holds it now
County Council Member	Peter B. Wilson source
County Council Member	John Agee source
County Council Member	Roy Brunson source
County Council Member	William Killian source
County Council Member	Erin Mosley source
County Council Member	Bobby Raines source

County officers

Office	Who holds it now
Clerk of Court	Betty Jo Lawson source
Coroner	Terry Tinker source
Probate Judge	Terri Zion source
Sheriff	Max Dorsey source

Cities and towns

Chester · Mayor Carlos Williams Legislative Delegation Office Gloria McCorey, Legislative Coordinator Chester Co. Courthouse 104 McAliley St., Chester 29706 Tel. (803) 581-0233 Email: cc.delegation@chestercounty.org · 1 seat

How many local governments Chester County has

The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 14 local governments in Chester County. This page lists the ones whose offices are elected.

Kind of government	Census count (2022)	Listed on this page
County government	1	1
Cities, towns, villages and townships	5	1
School districts (school boards)	1	0
Special districts (elected boards)	7	0

Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments: Government Units Listing (census.gov).

About these counts

The Census Bureau counts every independent local government once, in the county it assigns it to: the one it mostly serves or where it's based. A city or district that crosses county lines is counted in only one county, so it may be listed on this page but counted elsewhere, or the other way around. Many special districts, such as housing authorities, have appointed boards, and some places have more than one elected body, so the two columns measure different things. School systems run by a county, city or the state aren't counted as separate governments, though their boards may be listed here; in some states the Bureau counts community or state colleges as school districts. The counts are as of 2022.

Who lives in Chester County

32,182people

42.4median ageU.S.: 38.9

$52,458 household incomeU.S.: $80,734

18.7%below the U.S.: 12.5%

14%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%

$158,300median home valueU.S.: $332,700

5.6%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%

1.3%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%

8.4%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%

11.7%U.S.: 8.4%

45.3%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%

28.4%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%

Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 3% · White 57.7% · Black 34.5% · Asian 0.4% · Other or more than one race 4.4% (Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race; the other groups are non-Hispanic.)

Census Bureau, 2020–2024 5-year estimates (data.census.gov).

About these figures

The American Community Survey asks about 3.5 million households a year about who lives there, their work, income, schooling and housing. The 5-year estimates pool 2020–2024 answers so that every county and district has enough of them. They're estimates with a (larger for smaller places), and they're different from the once-a-decade census count. "Median" means half are above and half below. Household income is before taxes and includes everyone in the household. The unemployment share here is the survey's five-year average, so it differs from the monthly rate in the BLS jobs report. Race and Hispanic origin are as people describe themselves.

Health insurance means any coverage, private or public (such as Medicaid or Medicare), when people answered; the share is of everyone except people on active military duty and people living in institutions such as prisons and nursing homes. The housing shares are of renting households, and of homeowners with a mortgage, for whom the Census Bureau can compute them (households with no income, or renters who pay no cash rent, are left out). Rent here is gross rent, rent plus utilities; owner costs include the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities and fees.

Jobs in Chester County

4.9%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 5.7%. South Carolina: 3.7%.

728people unemployedSeptember 2026, preliminary.

14,031people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.

14,759in the September 2026, preliminary.

Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.

Every month, last two years

Month	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
September 2026 (preliminary)	4.9%	728	14,031	14,759
August 2026	5.3%	793	14,048	14,841
July 2026	5.2%	770	14,127	14,897
June 2026	5.3%	783	14,022	14,805
May 2026	4.8%	715	14,130	14,845
April 2026	4.6%	682	14,146	14,828
March 2026	5.3%	794	14,106	14,900
February 2026	6.5%	969	13,990	14,959
January 2026	6.8%	986	13,527	14,513
December 2025	5.9%	851	13,579	14,430
November 2025	6.4%	929	13,575	14,504
October 2025	not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 2025	5.7%	820	13,508	14,328
August 2025	6.2%	896	13,544	14,440
July 2025	6.1%	886	13,719	14,605
June 2025	5.6%	813	13,658	14,471
May 2025	5.1%	731	13,583	14,314
April 2025	4.8%	683	13,628	14,311
March 2025	5.4%	777	13,637	14,414
February 2025	5.8%	839	13,573	14,412
January 2025	5.6%	790	13,255	14,045
December 2024	5.5%	773	13,241	14,014
November 2024	5.9%	823	13,210	14,033
October 2024	5.8%	825	13,371	14,196

Yearly averages

Year	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
2025 (11 months)	5.7%	820	13,569	14,389
2024	5.5%	779	13,315	14,094
2023	3.9%	545	13,329	13,874
2022	4.1%	561	13,154	13,715
2021	5.4%	756	13,127	13,883
2020	8.3%	1,171	12,908	14,079
2019	3.9%	532	13,252	13,784
2018	4.5%	620	13,041	13,661
2017	5.7%	789	13,049	13,838
2016	6.7%	936	13,071	14,007

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, : BLS publishes county figures only that way, so they rise and fall with the seasons; compare a month with the same month a year earlier rather than with the month before. South Carolina's figure above is on the same basis; seasonally adjusted, as in BLS's monthly state release, it was 4.0% in September 2026. The latest month is preliminary and is revised the next month, and BLS revises earlier years each spring. People are counted where they live. October 2025 wasn't collected during the 2025 federal government shutdown, so 2025's yearly average covers 11 months.

Crime reported in Chester County

596.9 per 100,0002023. South Carolina: 477.1.

1,702.6 per 100,0002023. South Carolina: 2,224.4.

6murders2023, 190 violent crimes in all.

2023 is the latest year with complete reporting here: at least one of the county's police agencies didn't send the FBI a full year of figures since, so later totals would be undercounts.

Earlier years

Year	Violent	Rate	Property	Rate
2023	190	596.9	542	1,702.6
2022	262	810.4	604	1,868.3
2021	188	595.4	528	1,672.2
2019	200	621.9	837	2,602.8
2018	197	612.2	905	2,812.6
2017	164	511.6	853	2,660.8
2016	216	671.6	1,003	3,118.7

By police agency (4)

Agency	Year	Violent	Property	People served
Chester County Sheriff's Office	2025	56	180	24,201
Chester Police Department	2024	81	171	5,212
Great Falls Police Department	2023	20	36	1,898
Fort Lawn Police Department	2025	2	19	984

Crimes to the county's city and county police agencies (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A), per 100,000 people they serve. Years with incomplete reporting are left out. Crime in South Carolina · the U.S.

Police staffing

2.51 per 1,000 residents2024, 4 agencies serving 32,329 people.

81sworn officers2024, full-time, as of October 31.

57civilian staff2024, full-time.

2024 is the latest year every agency here sent the FBI its staff count.

Agencies counted (4), 2024

Agency	Officers	Civilians	People served
Chester County Sheriff's Office	64	54	24,221
Chester Police Department	11	3	5,212
Great Falls Police Department	4	0	1,920
Fort Lawn Police Department	2	0	976

Earlier years

Year	Officers	Per 1,000	Civilians	Agencies
2024	81	2.51	57	4
2022	79	2.44	62	4
2020	78	2.42	65	4
2019	74	2.30	64	4
2016	76	2.36	73	4

Full-time employees of the county's city police departments and sheriff's office, as each reported them to the FBI (Uniform Crime Reporting, Law Enforcement Employees), per 1,000 people in the areas those agencies serve (the FBI's population figures). A year is shown only when every one of these agencies sent a count; a count under half or over double the agency's own counts in nearby years is treated as not sent. Towns policed under contract by another agency are counted through that agency. State police, campus and other agencies aren't included. Sheriffs' offices often also run the county jail and courthouse security, so their staff counts include those jobs.

Quick answers

Who is the Chester County Clerk of Court?: Betty Jo Lawson is the Clerk of Court of Chester County, South Carolina.
Who is the Chester County Coroner?: Terry Tinker is the Coroner of Chester County, South Carolina.
Who is the Chester County Probate Judge?: Terri Zion is the Probate Judge of Chester County, South Carolina.
Who is the Chester County Sheriff?: Max Dorsey is the Sheriff of Chester County, South Carolina.
Who are the Chester County commissioners?: Peter B. Wilson (County Council Member); John Agee (County Council Member); Roy Brunson (County Council Member); William Killian (County Council Member); Erin Mosley (County Council Member); Bobby Raines (County Council Member).
What is the population of Chester County?: About 32,182 people, with a median age of 42.4; the median household income is $52,458 and 18.7% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Chester County?: 4.9% in September 2026 (preliminary): 728 people unemployed in a labor force of 14,759, against 5.7% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Chester County?: 14 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 5 municipal, 1 school district and 7 special district governments.
What cities and towns are in Chester County?: 1: Chester. Each has its own page with its mayor and council.

Officeholders as of October 15, 2026, from the South Carolina Legislative Manual's list of county officers and mayors of county seats; each name links to its source. Officials change between elections (appointments, resignations), and the body's own website is the authority. Party is shown only for offices elected on a partisan ballot.

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