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Garry Smith (South Carolina Representative)
Garry Smith (Republican Party) was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, representing District 27. He assumed office in 2002. He left office on November 14, 2022.
Smith (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the South Carolina House of Representatives to represent District 27. He won in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Biography
Smith earned his B.A. from the University of South Carolina-Aiken in 1979. He went on to receive his M.P.A. from the University of South Carolina in 1983. Smith has worked as the managing partner of Nin Tai Enterprises, Vice President of Burkhold Smith Planning & Management, and as a businessman. Smith served as Administrator for Bamberg County from 1988 to 1992. He then served as City Administrator of Simpsonville from 1992 to 1995.
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.
2021-2022
Smith was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Smith was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| South Carolina committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Operations and Management, Chair |
| • Ways and Means |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Smith served on the following committees:
| South Carolina committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Operations and Management, Chair |
| • Ways and Means |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Smith served on the following committees:
| South Carolina committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Ways and Means |
| • Operations and Management, Chair |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Smith served on the following committees:
| South Carolina committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Judiciary |
| • Operations and Management, Chair |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Smith served on the following committees:
| South Carolina committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Judiciary, Vice Chair |
| • Operations and Management |
| • Ways and Means |
Issues
Department of Administration
In 2011, Rep. Smith sponsored a bill to create the Department of Administration in South Carolina. The department would not replace the state Budget and Control Board. Smith said that it would create hundreds of thousands of dollars in new, annually recurring costs while generating an undetermined amount of yearly savings.
Supporters of the bill said it would help correct an imbalance of power in state government that is weighted heavily toward the Legislature, and they point to the Budget and Control Board (BCB) as an example of that lopsidedness.[1] A government restructuring bill of a similar form passed the South Carolina State Senate that session and again in 2013, but no similar bill had become law as of mid-2013.[2]
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
2022
Garry Smith did not file to run for re-election.
2020
See also: South Carolina House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27
Incumbent Garry Smith won election in the general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Garry Smith (R) | 96.5 | 16,482 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.5 | 591 | ||
| Total votes: 17,073 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Garry Smith advanced from the Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27.
2018
General election
General election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27
Incumbent Garry Smith won election in the general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Garry Smith (R) | 96.7 | 10,994 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 3.3 | 371 | ||
| Total votes: 11,365 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27
Incumbent Garry Smith defeated Fred Wall and Ira Williams in the Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 on June 12, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Garry Smith | 75.3 | 2,709 |
| Fred Wall | 12.4 | 446 | ||
 | Ira Williams | 12.3 | 441 | |
| Total votes: 3,596 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
2016
Elections for the South Carolina House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 14, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The primary runoff election was held on June 28, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 30, 2016.
Incumbent Garry Smith ran unopposed in the South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 general election.[3][4]
| South Carolina House of Representatives, District 27 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Garry Smith Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 14,295 | |
| Total Votes | 14,295 | |||
| Source: South Carolina State Election Commission | ||||
Incumbent Garry Smith ran unopposed in the South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 Republican primary.[5][6]
| South Carolina House of Representatives, District 27 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Garry Smith Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for all 124 seats in the South Carolina House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 10, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 30, 2014. Incumbent Garry Smith ran unopposed in the Republican primary and was unchallenged in the general election.[7][8][9]
2012
Smith ran unopposed in the Republican primary on June 12 and in the general election on November 6, 2012.[10][11]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Garry Smith Incumbent |
98.6% | 13,277 | |
| Other | Write-Ins | 1.4% | 184 | |
| Total Votes | 13,461 | |||
2010
Smith ran unopposed in the June 8 Republican primary for District 27 of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Smith defeated Laird Minor (L) in the general election on November 2[12].
| South Carolina House of Representatives, District 27 (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Garry Smith (R)
|
10,081 | 86.94% | ||
| Laird Minor (L) | 1,472 | 12.69% | ||
| Write-In | 43 | 0.37% | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Smith won re-election unopposed to the South Carolina House of Representatives with 14,859 votes, representing District 27.
Smith raised $13,204 for his campaign.[13]
| South Carolina House of Representatives, District 27 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Gary Smith (R)
|
14,859 | |||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Garry Smith did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
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.
Scorecards
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.
2022
In 2022, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 11 to May 12.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental and conservation issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored on business issues.
2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 12 to May 13.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 14 to June 25. The state Senate reconvened September to September 3. Both chambers reconvened September 15 to September 24.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 8 through May 21.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 9 through May 10.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 10 through May 11.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 12 through June 2.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 13 through June 4.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 14 through June 6.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 8 to June 20.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 11 through June 7.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the South Carolina State Legislature was in session from January 11 through June 2. On June 2, 2011, Governor Nikki Haley (R) attempted to call the legislature into an "emergency" special session to begin on June 7 to create the new South Carolina Department of Administration. A lawsuit was filed by Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell (R), in which he contended that Haley's call for a special session was unconstitutional, and that it violated the state Constitution's requirement of separation of powers among the governor, legislature and courts.[14] On June 6, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled 3-2 against Governor Haley, stating that her order violated the Legislature's ability to set its calendar and agenda. The legislature met in a special redistricting session from June 14 - July 1.[15] The legislature re-convened July 26.[16]
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The Palmetto Liberty PAC Scorecard
The Palmetto Liberty Political Action Committee, a conservative, pro-limited government think tank in South Carolina, releases its scorecard for South Carolina representatives and senators once a year. The scorecard gives each legislator a score based on how he or she voted in the two-year legislative term prior to the election on specific issues that the Palametto Liberty PAC thinks are anti-limited government. "Most of the votes shown on the score card are votes that we lost. Now we can identify the Legislators that caused us to lose these votes. These Legislators are the ones who need to be replaced if we are to achieve the vision of having the most free state in the nation."[17]
2012
Garry Smith received a score of 47% in the 2012 scorecard, ranking 6th out of all 124 South Carolina House of Representatives members.[18] His score was followed by representatives Wendy Nanney (40%), Lewis Pinson (40%), and Alan D. Clemmons (33%).[19]
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Smith and his wife, Brenda, have two children.
See also
2020 Elections
External links
|
Candidate South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ The Nerve, "Nothing for Certain with Administration Agency," April 1, 2011 (dead link)
- ↑ South Carolina Policy Council, "Restructuring Update: déjà vu all over again?" April 12, 2013
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "Candidate listing for the 11/8/2016 statewide general election," accessed August 26, 2016
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "2016 Statewide General Election," accessed November 28, 2016
- ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "Candidate Tracking," accessed March 31, 2016
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "Unofficial primary election results," accessed June 14, 2016
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "Election Results," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "Official general election results," accessed November 13, 2014
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "2014 Election Information," accessed March 31, 2014
- ↑ AP.org, "South Carolina State Senate and State House Election Results," accessed November 7, 2012
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "2012 Candidates," accessed April 19, 2012
- ↑ www.enr-scvotes.org, "2010 General Election Results," accessed May 1, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "2008 campaign contributions," accessed May 15, 2014
- ↑ The State, "High court rules against Haley," June 6, 2011
- ↑ The Sun News, "S.C. House to have special session in June," May 6, 2011
- ↑ The Island Packet, "S.C. Senate OKs new congressional districted anchored in Beaufort County," June 29, 2011
- ↑ The Palmetto Liberty Political Action Committee, "Voting Records," accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ Palmetto Liberty Political Action Committee, "South Carolina Senate Score Card 2012," accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ Palmetto Liberty Political Action Committee, "South Carolina Senate Score Card 2012," accessed May 15, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
South Carolina House of Representatives District 27 2002-2022 |
Succeeded by David Vaughan (R) |
