Marshall ClementSanford Jr. is an American politician and author who served as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district from 1995 to 2001 and from 2013 to 2019, and as the 115th governor of South Carolina from 2003 to 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Henry Dargan McMaster is an American politician and attorney serving as the 117th governor of South Carolina since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 50th Attorney General of South Carolina from 2003 to 2011 and the 91st lieutenant governor of South Carolina from 2015 to 2017 under Governor Nikki Haley.
John Willie Drummond was an American politician. He was a Democratic member of the South Carolina Senate, who represented the 10th District from 1966 through 2008. He was also a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1965 through 1966.
Clementa Carlos Pinckney was an American politician and pastor who served as a Democratic member of the South Carolina Senate, representing the 45th District from 2000 until his murder in 2015. He was previously a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1997 through 2000.
Glenn Fant McConnell is an American politician from South Carolina. He was a member of the South Carolina Senate, representing the 41st District from 1981 to March 13, 2012. He ascended to the office of lieutenant governor on March 13, 2012 because he was the Senate President Pro Tempore. He served as the 89th Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina until June 18, 2014. The office of lieutenant governor had become vacant because of the resignation of Ken Ard on March 9, 2012 due to his indictment by a state Grand Jury for ethics violations.
Harvey Smith Peeler Jr. is an American politician. He is a member of the South Carolina Senate, representing the 14th District from since the 1980s, initially as a Democrat, and from October 1989, as a Republican. He was the Senate Majority Leader from 2005 to 2016 and President of the Senate from 2019 to 2021. In 2021, he became Chair of the Finance Committee after the death of Hugh Leatherman.
Hugh Kenneth Leatherman Sr. was an American politician who served as a Republican member of the South Carolina Senate from 1981 until his death in 2021. The 31st District, which he represented, is anchored in Florence, South Carolina. From 2001 until his death, Leatherman effectively controlled South Carolina's budget as the Senate Finance Chairman and was considered one of the most powerful people in South Carolina politics. He negotiated the deal to bring Boeing to South Carolina in 2009 and secured funding for the deepening of the Charleston Harbor in 2011. At the time of his death, Leatherman served as Vice Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. He served as President Pro Tempore of the South Carolina Senate for all but one day from June 18, 2014, to January 8, 2019. The position was abolished and replaced with the President of the Senate. Prior to this change, Leatherman was capable of being both President of the Senate and Senate Finance Chairman. He was also a member of the State Budget and Control Board until it was abolished in 2014.
The economy of South Carolina was ranked the 25th largest in the United States based on gross domestic product in 2022. Tourism, centered around Myrtle Beach, Charleston, and Hilton Head Island, is the state's largest industry. The state's other major economic sector is advanced manufacturing located primarily in the Upstate and the Lowcountry.
Timothy Eugene Scott is an American businessman and politician serving as the junior United States senator from South Carolina since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a member of the Charleston County Council, a state representative, and a U.S. Representative. He also worked in financial services before entering politics.
Alan McCrory Wilson is an American lawyer, politician, and a member of the South Carolina National Guard serving as the 51st Attorney General of South Carolina since 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.
The Port of Charleston is a seaport located in South Carolina in the Southeastern United States. The port's facilities span three municipalities—Charleston, North Charleston, and Mount Pleasant—with six public terminals owned and operated by the South Carolina Ports Authority (SCPA). These facilities handle containers, motor vehicles and other rolling stock, non-containerized goods and project cargo, as well as Charleston's cruise ship operation. Additional facilities in the port are privately owned and operated, handling bulk commodities like petroleum, coal and steel.
James Howle "Jay" Lucas is an American politician and attorney. He served as a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 65th District from 1999 to 2022. Lucas is a Republican.
The 2018 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 2018, to elect the governor of South Carolina. Incumbent Republican governor Henry McMaster, who took office after Nikki Haley resigned to become U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, ran for election to a full term. The primary was held on June 12, with the Democrats nominating State Representative James E. Smith Jr. McMaster failed to win a majority of the vote, and then defeated John Warren in the Republican runoff on June 26. In the general election, McMaster defeated Smith, winning election to a full term.
Joseph Kendrick Cunningham is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district from 2019 to 2021. The district includes much of South Carolina's share of the Atlantic Coast, from Charleston to Hilton Head Island.
Richard Quinn Sr. was an American political consultant who, until his death, was under indictment for perjury in a state of South Carolina political corruption case. A long-time Republican Party campaign consultant, he advised the presidential campaigns of Ronald Reagan, John McCain, and Lindsey Graham. He was known as one of South Carolina's most prominent political consultants. He was once the editor of the Neo-Confederate Southern Partisan magazine although he later recanted the views he held while in that position.
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.
Jermaine Johnson Sr. is an American politician, political advisor and former professional basketball player. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the member-elect for South Carolina House of Representatives District 52.
The Charleston Chronicle was a weekly newspaper serving the African-American and Black communities in Charleston, South Carolina. The paper was founded in 1971 by James J. French and it ceased publication shortly after his death in 2021.
Jordan S. Pace is an American politician of the Republican Party. He is the member of the South Carolina House of Representatives representing District 117.
The South Carolina Statehouse corruption investigation was a probe into unlawful interactions between members of the South Carolina General Assembly, the political firm of Richard Quinn, Sr., and major state institutions and corporations from 2013 to 2021. The influence of Quinn's consulting firm was called the Quinndom. By the end of the investigation, four members of the South Carolina General Assembly were indicted on public corruption charges. This investigation is often considered the most significant political scandal in the history of the state of South Carolina since Operation Lost Trust in 1989. Lost Trust directly influenced the passing of South Carolina's Ethics Reform Act of 1991, and led to the restructuring of the state government in 1993. The investigation raised questions about the effectiveness of that reform in the face of political corruption and dark money influence.
