Vincent Sheheen

Vincent Sheheen
South Carolina State Senate District 27
Incumbent
In office
2004-Present
Term ends
November 14, 2016
Years in position	9
Party	Democratic
Compensation
Base salary	$10,400/year
Per diem	$131/day
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
First elected	2004
Next election	November 8, 2016
Term limits	N/A
Prior offices
South Carolina House of Representatives
2000-2004
Education
Bachelor's	Clemson University, 1993
J.D.	University of South Carolina, 1996
Personal
Birthday	April 29, 1971
Place of birth	Camden, SC
Profession	Attorney
Websites
Office website

Vincent Sheheen (b. April 29, 1971) is a Democratic member of the South Carolina State Senate, representing District 27 since winning a February 2004 special election.

Sheheen was the Democratic nominee in the 2010 gubernatorial election in South Carolina. He announced he will seek the nomination for governor again in 2014.

Sheheen served in the South Carolina State House from 2000 to 2004. He won a Special Election for the South Carolina State Senate in February of 2004. He joined the South Carolina State Senate in 2004. He has served in that position since, representing the 27th district.

Sheheen earned his BA from Clemson University in 1993. He went on to receive his JD from the University of South Carolina in 1996. Sheheen was a Law Clerk for the United States District Judge from 1996 to 1998. In 2000 he was Prosecutor for the City of Camden. He was then the Adjunct Instructor for the University of South Carolina School of Law from 1998 to 2001. He is currently an attorney for Savage, Royall and Sheheen, Limited Liability Partnership.

In June 2011, Governing Magazine named Sheheen one of 12 "Democratic Legislators to Watch." Each of the legislators was selected on the basis of qualities such as leadership, ambition, and political potential.

Committee assignments

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Sheheen served on the following committees:

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Sheheen served on the following committees:

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Sheheen served on the following committees:

Issues

Balance of powers

Before the 2011 session began, three bills were filed in the South Carolina State Legislature that would restructure the amount of power the legislature has compared to the state executive and judicial branches. The lawmakers who submitted the bills hold that the scales of authority and oversight have been weighted against the executive and judicial branches in favor of the Legislature for decades, both constitutionally and statutorily.

For example, the state Budget and Control Board is both an agency and a board and it is a discordant hybrid of the executive and legislative branches that is unique to South Carolina.

The board consists of three constitutional officers elected statewide, including the governor as chairman, and two of the most powerful legislators – the chairmen of the budget-writing Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees.

In another example, the power to appoint hundreds of members to executive boards and commissions rests with the General Assembly.

“We need to give the governor the power to be governor,” says Sen. Chip Campsen.

Campsen is the chief sponsor of one of the three restructuring bills, S. 134.

“The small little cabal of senior legislators and those they influence, they don’t want to give up any power,” says Sen. Mike Rose, who is co-sponsoring Campsen’s bill.

Bringing bipartisanship to the reform table, Sen. Vincent Sheheen, a Democrat, is sponsoring one of the other two bills, S. 261. Campsen and Rose both have signed onto the Sheheen measure.

Elections

2014

See also: South Carolina gubernatorial election, 2014

In April 2013, Sheheen announced in an email to supporters that he is building a campaign for governor in 2014. “Three years ago, we came so very close to changing South Carolina for the better. Now we can finish the job together,” he stated.

Incumbent Nikki Haley has yet to announce if she intends to run for re-election.

2012

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2012

Sheheen won election in the 2012 election for South Carolina State Senate District 27. Sheheen ran unopposed in the June 12 Democratic primary and ran unopposed in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.

South Carolina State Senate, District 27, General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Vincent Sheheen Incumbent	99%	29,031
	Other	Write-Ins	1%	298
Total Votes				29,329

2010

See also: South Carolina gubernatorial election, 2010 and Gubernatorial elections, 2010

Sheheen defeated Jim Rex and Robert Ford in the June 8 primary.

He lost to Nikki Haley (R) in the general election on November 2, 2010.

South Carolina Governor, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Nikki Haley	51.4%	690,525
	Democratic	Vincent A. Sheheen	46.9%	630,534
	Green	Morgan Bruce Reeves	0.9%	12,483
	UNC	Morgan Bruce Reeves	0.6%	7,631
	Write-In	Various	0.2%	3,025
Total Votes				1,344,198
Election Results Via: South Carolina Election Commission

2008

Sheheen won re-election for District 27 of the South Carolina State Senate with 28,838 votes, ahead of write-ins (129).

He raised $56,274 for his campaign.

South Carolina State Senate, District 27
Candidates		Votes
Vincent Sheheen (D)		28,838
Write-ins		129

Campaign donors

2012

Campaign donor information is not yet available for this year.

2008

Sheheen raised $56,274 in the 2008 election cycle.

His top contributor is listed below, and 26 donors gave $1,000 each, the next highest contribution amount his campaign receieved.

Donor	Amount
SCANA Corporation	$1,500

Personal

Sheheen and his wife Amy have three children.

External links

Suggest a link

• Vincent Sheheen's personal website
• Profile from the South Carolina Legislature
• Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
• Biography from Project Vote Smart
• Campaign Contributions: 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000
• Vincent Sheheen on Facebook
• Vincent Sheheen on Twitter
• Vincent Sheheen's YouTube Channel

References

Political offices
Preceded by Donald Holland	South Carolina State Senate - District 27 2004–present	Succeeded by NA