Stephen K. Benjamin Last updated February 11, 2025 American politician (born 1969)
Steve Benjamin
Benjamin in August 2023
In office –President Joe Biden Preceded by Keisha Lance Bottoms Succeeded by Jim Goyer (as Director of the Office of Public Liaison ) In office –President Joe Biden Principal Deputy Jamie Citron Preceded by Keisha Lance Bottoms Succeeded by Jim Goyer In office –Preceded by Bob Coble Succeeded by Daniel Rickenmann In office –Preceded by Mitch Landrieu Succeeded by Bryan Barnett In office –Governor Jim Hodges Preceded by Stephen Bernie Succeeded by Joan Meacham Born Stephen Keith Benjamin
(1969-12-01 ) December 1,1969 (age 55) New York City ,U.S.Political party Democratic Spouse DeAndrea Gist Education University of South Carolina (BA ,JD )
Stephen Keith Benjamin (born December 1,1969) is an American politician and businessman who served as the director of the White House Office of Public Engagement for the Biden administration ,and also as one of the senior advisors to President Biden from April 1,2023,to January 20,2025. 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. [ 1] Benjamin served as the 76th president of the United States Conference of Mayors from 2018 to 2019. [ 2]
Benjamin's parents are from Orangeburg,South Carolina ,but relocated to Queens during the Great Migration in the 1960s. Benjamin moved to Columbia to attend college. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of South Carolina in 1991 and a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1994. [ 3]
As a student at the University of South Carolina,Benjamin was actively involved in the student chapter of NAACP ,eventually becoming president. He was elected as student body president during his undergraduate career and served as president of the student bar association during his third year of law school. He is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi and Sigma Pi Phi fraternities. [ 4]
Benjamin is the principal of the Benjamin Law Firm,LLC ,in Columbia,where his practice emphasized governmental strategic planning,administrative and regulatory work,municipal finance and general business matters. [ 5]
Political career In 1999,Benjamin was appointed by Democratic Governor Jim Hodges to lead the South Carolina Department of Probation,Parole,and Pardon Services ,a position which he held until 2003. [ 6] In 2002,Benjamin led an unsuccessful campaign for attorney general of South Carolina as a Democratic candidate,losing to Republican Henry McMaster by a margin of 11%. [ 7]
During the 2000 presidential election ,Benjamin was a South Carolina state co-chair of GoreNet. [ 8] GoreNet was a group that supported the Al Gore campaign with a focus on grassroots and online organizing as well as hosting small dollar donor events. [ 9]
Mayor of Columbia In 2010,Benjamin won a special election to become the mayor of Columbia,besting Kirkman Finlay III in a runoff to succeed Bob Coble . In November 2017,Benjamin was the only candidate to file for mayoral election. Benjamin,therefore,did not appear on the ballot and was automatically declared to be re-elected without any votes. [ 1] On February 4,2021,Benjamin announced that he would not seek re-election in 2021. [ 10]
Electoral history Mayor of Columbia, 2017 Candidate Votes % Steve Benjamin 0
Benjamin was the only candidate to file; he was automatically declared re-elected with no votes. [ 1] Mayor of Columbia, 2013 [ 20] Candidate Votes % Steve Benjamin 10,401 64.1 Moe Baddourah 5,594 34.4 Other 224 1.5
Mayor of Columbia, 2010 (Special Runoff) [ 21] Candidate Votes % Steve Benjamin 10,894 55.2 Kirkman Finlay III 8,845 44.8
Mayor of Columbia, 2010 (Special) [ 22] Candidate Votes % Steve Benjamin 6,067 35.5 Kirkman Finlay III 5,485 32.1 Steve Morrison 5,053 29.5 Other 472 2.9
South Carolina Attorney General Election, 2002 Party Candidate Votes % Republican Henry McMaster 601,931 55.48 Democratic Steve Benjamin 482,560 44.48 Write-ins Write-ins 498 0.05
Recognition and awards The Root's 100 Influential Black Americans (2011 & 2013) [ 23] The Phoenix Award for Outstanding Contributions to Disaster Recovery by a Public Official (2017) [ 24] References 1 2 3 "Dubious new distinction for Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin" . Retrieved September 5, 2018 . ↑ United States Conference of Mayors. "Congratulations to @SteveBenjaminSC, the 76th President of the United States Conference of Mayors!" . Retrieved May 7, 2018 . ↑ "South Carolina Legislature Online - Search" . www.scstatehouse.gov . Retrieved August 16, 2020 . ↑ ":: Welcome to the City of Columbia ::" . www.columbiasc.net . Retrieved August 16, 2020 . ↑ "The Honorable Stephen K. Benjamin's Biography" . The HistoryMakers . Retrieved February 27, 2023 . ↑ "Our History – SCDPPPS" . www.dppps.sc.gov . Retrieved September 5, 2018 . ↑ "Our Campaigns – SC Attorney General Race – Nov 05, 2002" . www.ourcampaigns.com . Retrieved September 5, 2018 . ↑ "GoreNet State Co-Chairs" . Gore 2000. August 15, 2000. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved July 29, 2024 . ↑ "GoreNet: A Network of Young Americans Dedicated to Al Gore President" . Gore 2000. August 15, 2000. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved July 29, 2024 . ↑ "Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin won't run again, will focus on family, law firm" . wltx.com . February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 4, 2022 . ↑ Greene, Alexia (April 28, 2022). " . Cola Daily . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ McConchie, Brian (October 26, 2021). " . WACH-TV . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ Fastenau, Stephen (April 3, 2022). " . Post and Courier . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ Kinnard, Meg (December 1, 2020). " . WLTX-TV . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ Kurtz, Josh (June 3, 2022). " . Maryland Matters . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ Bade, Rachael (March 8, 2022). " . Politico . Retrieved November 12, 2022 . ↑ "President Biden Announces Former Mayor Stephen Benjamin as Senior Advisor and Director of the Office of Public Engagement" . The White House . February 27, 2023. Retrieved February 27, 2023 . ↑ "Former South Carolina mayor replaces Bottoms at White House Office of Public Engagement" . MSN . Retrieved February 27, 2023 . ↑ "Mayor Steve Benjamin // About Steve" . Archived from the original on June 10, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2012 . ↑ "Richland County: Official Results" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2017. Retrieved October 13, 2017 . ↑ "City of Columbia Run-off: Official Results" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2017. Retrieved October 13, 2017 . ↑ "Richland County: Unofficial Results" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2017. Retrieved October 13, 2017 . ↑ "Steve Benjamin - the Root" . Archived from the original on May 18, 2014. Retrieved May 18, 2014 . ↑ "Mayor Benjamin Awarded for Leadership During Thousand Year Flood" . Retrieved September 5, 2018 . This page is based on this
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