WHO WILL FILL HIS SEAT IN CONGRESS?
Two-and-a-half weeks ago this website exclusively reported that U.S. Rep. Mick Mulvaney was in line to become director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) – one of the largest and most influential offices within the administration.
That news is now official …
Mulvaney’s appointment will be announced this week by the transition office of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump.
Assuming he’s confirmed by the U.S. Senate in January, Mulvaney would vacate the fifth congressional district seat he’s held since January of 2011 – meaning a special election for the seat would be held next spring.
And yes … we’ve already addressed the likely contenders in this race (at least on the GOP side).
To recap, newly-elected S.C. House majority leader Gary Simrill, S.C. Rep. Ralph Norman and former SCGOP chairman Chad Connelly are the three names we hear most often in connection with this imminent Republican primary race.
Of those three, Simrill would probably be the most formidable candidate – although he’s rapidly rising in the ranks in the S.C. House of Representatives and might not want to trade his increasingly influential position in state government for a bit part on the national stage.
What about Democrats, though?
The state’s perpetual minority party ran a well-funded, credible candidate against Mulvaney in 2016 – former vice-presidential aide Fran Person. And while Person got thumped by Mulvaney in last month’s election, he would likely find much smoother sailing in a special election for an open seat.
And unlike other Democrats, he wouldn’t have to build a campaign organization from the ground up.
In addition to Person’s name, the names of S.C. Reps. John King and Mandy Powers Norrell have also been floated as possible candidates – as has the name of S.C. Senator Thomas McElveen of Sumter, S.C.
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