Columbia is the capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census,it is the second-most populous city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County,and a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. It is the center of the Columbia Metropolitan Statistical Area,which had a population of 829,470 in 2020 and is the 7th largest urban center in the Deep South and the 72nd-largest metropolitan statistical area in the nation. The name Columbia is a poetic term used for the United States,derived from the name of Christopher Columbus,who explored for the Spanish Crown. Columbia is often abbreviated as Cola,leading to its nickname as "Soda City."
David Horton Wilkins is an American attorney and a former United States Ambassador to Canada during the administration of President George W. Bush. Prior to the appointment,he practiced law for 30 years while serving in the South Carolina House of Representatives for 25 of those years. He was speaker of the South Carolina House for 11 years. Wilkins presently chairs the public policy and international law practice department of a South Carolina law firm.
Joseph Patrick Riley Jr. is an American politician who was the Mayor of Charleston,South Carolina. He was one of the longest serving mayors in the United States that is still living,having served 10 terms starting on December 15,1975,and ending on January 11,2016.
The South Carolina State House is the building housing the government of the U.S. state of South Carolina,which includes the South Carolina General Assembly and the offices of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina. Located in the capital city of Columbia near the corner of Gervais and Assembly Streets,the building also housed the Supreme Court until 1971.
Blue Sky is an American painter and sculptor best known for his mural,Tunnelvision.
Susan Audé is a retired American television news anchor in Columbia,South Carolina at WIS-TV. A child of military service parents she entered adulthood from Virginia to Erskine College in South Carolina in 1972 when she was seriously injured in a car accident in 1974. She spent six months in the hospital. Living the rest of her life in a wheelchair,she overcame depression and anger at the time and earned degrees and a career in television news broadcast,starting in 1978 until retirement in 2006,as well as working in theatre and public speaking. Raised a Methodist,she converted to the BaháʼíFaith in 1995 and she says it broadened her views of society and religion.
Dreher High School is a co-educational four-year public high school in Richland County School District One located in Columbia,South Carolina,United States. Dreher,established in 1938,is one of the oldest public high schools in South Carolina. In 2022,Dreher was ranked the seventh-best high school in South Carolina and 1,017th in national rankings by U.S. News &World Report.
The 2004 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 2,2004. Longtime incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Fritz Hollings retired,and Republican U.S. Representative Jim DeMint won the open seat. DeMint was the first Republican to hold this Senate seat since 1879,and the first Republican to ever be popularly elected to the seat.
John L. Scott Jr. was an American politician who served as a member of the South Carolina Legislature from 1991 until his death. Scott was a small business owner in Columbia,South Carolina.
The 2001 United States elections were held on November 6 of that year. The 2001 recession was a dominant issue throughout the year as well as the September 11 attacks and subsequent war on terror.
Stephen Keith Benjamin is an American politician and businessman currently serving as the Director of the Office of Public Engagement for the Biden administration,and also as one of the senior advisors to president Biden since February 27,2023. He previously served as the 70th mayor of Columbia,South Carolina,from July 2010 to January 2022. He was the first African American mayor in the city's history. Before serving as mayor,he worked in the Columbia metropolitan area as an attorney and served on various charitable organizations. On November 8,2017,Benjamin won re-election for a third term as mayor with no votes as no other candidate filed. Benjamin was declared re-elected. Benjamin served as the 76th president of the United States Conference of Mayors from 2018 to 2019.
James Raymond Davenport III,born in Great Falls,Montana,was an American journalist and reporter with the Associated Press,based in South Carolina. Davenport graduated from the University of South Carolina,with a bachelor's and a master's degree in English and journalism.
Katrina Frye Shealy is an American politician,and a member of the South Carolina State Senate. She is a Republican but was elected as a petition candidate from District 23 in Lexington County. At the time of her election in 2012,she was the only woman in the South Carolina Senate but as of May 2023,she is now one of five women currently serving in the South Carolina State Senate.
Beth Bernstein is a Democratic member of the South Carolina House of Representatives,representing House District 78,Richland County,Columbia,SC. She was first elected in November 2012.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Columbia,South Carolina,USA.
Michael Del Priore was an American master portrait artist with an international reputation,known for oil and pastel portraits in the Classical Realism style.
Tanya Amber Gee was a judge of the South Carolina Circuit Court.
David Michael Pascoe is an American lawyer serving as the First Circuit Solicitor in the state of South Carolina since 2005. The First Circuit comprises Dorchester,Calhoun,and Orangeburg counties. In 2016,Pascoe won a Supreme Court case against the South Carolina Attorney General where the Attorney General attempted to remove Pascoe as the special prosecutor in a corruption probe involving the General Assembly. Pascoe oversaw the investigation and secured convictions on five powerful South Carolina General Assembly members that included the House speaker,President Pro Tem of the Senate,Chairman of the House Judiciary,and two former House Majority Leaders.
Seth Rose is an American lawyer and politician. Prior to his legal and political career,Rose was a First Team All-America singles tennis player for the University of South Carolina. In his college career Rose twice defeated the number one ranked NCAA singles player in the nation and advanced to the Round of 16 in the 2003 Div. I NCAA Men's Singles Championships held in Athens,Georgia. He was inducted into the Gamecock Athletic Hall of Fame in 2014. A former Richland County Councilman (2011-2018),he is currently a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 72nd District,serving since 2018. He is a member of the Democratic party. Rose is a former Richland County prosecutor and the principal attorney at Seth Rose,Attorney at Law.
Daniel Rickenmann is an American businessman and politician,serving as the Mayor of Columbia,South Carolina. Born in Spartanburg,South Carolina,he is the son of immigrants from Switzerland. He attended the University of South Carolina in 1987.
