Deon Tedder

Deon Tedder

Democratic Party

South Carolina State Senate District 42

Tenure

2023 - Present

Term ends

2028

Years in position

1

Predecessor

Marlon Kimpson

Prior offices

South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

Successor: Tiffany Spann-Wilder

Predecessor: David Mack

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Compensation

Base salary

$10,400/year

Per diem

$231/day

Elections and appointments

Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

South Carolina State University

Law

University of South Carolina School of Law

Personal

Birthplace

Durham, N.C.

Profession

Attorney

Contact

Official website

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign Instagram

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Deon Tedder (Democratic Party) is a member of the South Carolina State Senate, representing District 42. He assumed office on November 7, 2023. His current term ends on November 13, 2028.

Tedder (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the South Carolina State Senate to represent District 42. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Deon Tedder was born in Durham, North Carolina. Tedder earned a bachelor’s degree from South Carolina State University in 2012 and a J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 2015. His career experience includes working as an attorney.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Tedder was assigned to the following committees:

• Education and Public Works Committee
• Operations and Management Committee

2021-2022

Tedder was assigned to the following committees:

• Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs Committee
• Invitations and Memorial Resolutions Committee

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2024

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for South Carolina State Senate District 42

Incumbent Deon Tedder won election in the general election for South Carolina State Senate District 42 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder (D)	98.2	26,088
		Other/Write-in votes	1.8	477

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 26,565
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 42

Incumbent Deon Tedder defeated Kim Greene in the Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 42 on June 11, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder	83.3	2,594
		Kim Greene	16.7	520

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,114
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Tedder in this election.

2023

See also: South Carolina state legislative special elections, 2023

General election

Special general election for South Carolina State Senate District 42

Deon Tedder defeated Rosa Kay in the special general election for South Carolina State Senate District 42 on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder (D)	81.7	10,565
	Submit photo	Rosa Kay (R)	18.0	2,322
		Other/Write-in votes	0.4	46

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 12,933
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary runoff election

Special Democratic primary runoff for South Carolina State Senate District 42

Deon Tedder defeated Wendell Gilliard in the special Democratic primary runoff for South Carolina State Senate District 42 on September 19, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder	50.1	2,093
		Wendell Gilliard	49.9	2,082

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 4,175
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Special Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 42

Wendell Gilliard and Deon Tedder advanced to a runoff. They defeated JA Moore in the special Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 42 on September 5, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Wendell Gilliard	46.6	1,856
✔		Deon Tedder	38.6	1,536
		JA Moore	14.8	588

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,980
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Rosa Kay advanced from the special Republican primary for South Carolina State Senate District 42.

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Tedder in this election.

2022

See also: South Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

Incumbent Deon Tedder defeated Rodney Travis in the general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder (D)	76.4	5,912
	Submit photo	Rodney Travis (L)	22.8	1,764
		Other/Write-in votes	0.7	58

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 7,734
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Deon Tedder advanced from the Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

Rodney Travis advanced from the Libertarian convention for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 on June 18, 2022.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Rodney Travis (L)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2020

See also: South Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

Deon Tedder defeated Rodney Travis in the general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder (D)	80.6	11,279
	Submit photo	Rodney Travis (L)	18.7	2,620
		Other/Write-in votes	0.7	97

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 13,996
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

Deon Tedder defeated James Johnson in the Democratic primary runoff for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 on June 23, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Deon Tedder	56.2	911
	Submit photo	James Johnson	43.8	711

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,622
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109

James Johnson and Deon Tedder advanced to a runoff. They defeated Jeff Wilder in the Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 on June 9, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	James Johnson	39.2	1,553
✔		Deon Tedder	35.7	1,416
		Jeff Wilder	25.1	996

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,965
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Deon Tedder did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2023

Deon Tedder did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Deon Tedder did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Deon Tedder completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Tedder's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am Deon Tedder, a resident of North Charleston, SC, and I am running for South Carolina House of Representatives District 109. As a lifelong Democrat and a tireless advocate for my community, I have spent my career fighting for South Carolinians, and now I'm ready to bring that fight to the State House!

I am a proud graduate of SC State University's Honors College, graduating magna cum laude, and the University of South Carolina's School of Law.

While in college, I worked in the office of the late Senator Ted Kennedy, where I assisted on the Health, Education, Labor, & Pension (HELP) Committee.

I hold the honor of having been recognized by the National Black Lawyers Association as Top 40 under 40 Personal Injury attorneys. I enjoy volunteering with the Be A Mentor program, Harvest Hope Food Bank, and (specify school). And I take great pride in having served as a Guardian Ad Litem for a Court Appointed Special Advocates Program.

What makes me unique is my ability to easily empathize and relate to people. Electing me would mean an experienced lawyer that is forward-thinking. It would also signal a fresh perspective on issues like criminal justice reform, affordable housing and education.

I am honored to be endorsed by SC House Democratic Leader Representative Todd Rutherford, Charleston City Paper, and Conservation Voters of South Carolina.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I have always had a passion to help others. As an attorney it is my job and my life's work to protect those that need protecting. There would be no greater honor than to be a part of the decision making process regarding how to protect, serve and honor the great citizens of Charleston and Dorchester counties.
• As a product of the public education system, I understand the gaps in educational outcomes-high school graduation rates, college readiness and workforce advancements based on race, class and geography. These issues are magnified in underserved communities and it is the role of the government to help bridge this divide. I believe that in order to succeed we must invest in ourselves and our children. If given the honor to represent District 109 I will work tirelessly to be that bridge to make sure that sure every child - no matter their socioeconomic status - has an opportunity to further their own learning.
• As a member of the legislative body I will also fight to reform our unbalanced criminal justice system, public education, housing inequalities and promote sustainable growth while protecting our natural resources.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about investing in the public education system and raising teacher pay, criminal justice reform, and Medicaid expansion.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Deon Tedder campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	South Carolina State Senate District 42	Won general	$94,021	$97,252
2023	South Carolina State Senate District 42	Won general	$270,068	$262,567
2022	South Carolina House of Representatives District 109	Won general	$30,413	$25,306
2020	South Carolina House of Representatives District 109	Won general	$86,933	N/A**
Grand total			$481,435	$385,125
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in South Carolina

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of South Carolina scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].

In 2024, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 9 to May 9. Americans for Prosperity - South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Conservation Voters of South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and conservation issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.

2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].

In 2023, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 10 to May 11. Americans for Prosperity - South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Conservation Voters of South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and conservation issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].

In 2022, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 11 to May 12. Americans for Prosperity - South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Conservation Voters of South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and conservation issues. National Federation of Independent Business Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues. South Carolina Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on business issues.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].

In 2021, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 12 to May 13. Americans for Prosperity - South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues. Conservation Voters of South Carolina Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and conservation issues. South Carolina Chamber of Commerce Legislators are scored on business issues. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

See also

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Candidate

South Carolina State Senate District 42

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South Carolina State Senate District 42

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Marlon Kimpson (D)	South Carolina State Senate District 42 2023-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by David Mack (D)	South Carolina House of Representatives District 109 2020-2023	Succeeded by Tiffany Spann-Wilder (D)

[show]

Current members of the South Carolina State Senate

Leadership

Senate President:Thomas Alexander

Majority Leader:Shane Massey

Minority Leader:Brad Hutto

Senators

District 1

Thomas Alexander (R)

District 2

Rex Rice (R)

District 3

Richard Cash (R)

District 4

Michael Gambrell (R)

District 5

Tom Corbin (R)

District 6

Jason Elliott (R)

District 7

Karl Allen (D)

District 8

Ross Turner (R)

District 9

Daniel Verdin (R)

District 10

Billy Garrett (R)

District 11

Josh Kimbrell (R)

District 12

Vacant

District 13

Shane Martin (R)

District 14

Harvey Peeler (R)

District 15

Wes Climer (R)

District 16

Michael Johnson (R)

District 17

Everett Stubbs (R)

District 18

Ronnie Cromer (R)

District 19

Tameika Isaac Devine (D)

District 20

Ed Sutton (D)

District 21

Darrell Jackson (D)

District 22

Overture Walker (D)

District 23

Carlisle Kennedy (R)

District 24

Tom Young (R)

District 25

Shane Massey (R)

District 26

Russell Ott (D)

District 27

Allen Blackmon (R)

District 28

Greg Hembree (R)

District 29

J.D. Chaplin (R)

District 30

Kent Williams (D)

District 31

Mike Reichenbach (R)

District 32

Ronnie Sabb (D)

District 33

Luke Rankin (R)

District 34

Stephen Goldfinch (R)

District 35

Jeffrey Graham (D)

District 36

Jeffrey Zell (R)

District 37

Lawrence Grooms (R)

District 38

Sean Bennett (R)

District 39

Tom Fernandez (R)

District 40

Brad Hutto (D)

District 41

Matthew Leber (R)

District 42

Deon Tedder (D)

District 43

George Campsen (R)

District 44

Brian Adams (R)

District 45

Margie Matthews (D)

District 46

Tom Davis (R)

Republican Party (33)

Democratic Party (12)

Vacancies (1)