Members of the House of Representatives met in Columbia this week to elect the leadership, receive committee appointments and organize the 2021-22 legislative session.
Mayor Jay Lucas (R-Darlington) was re-elected for a fourth term as Mayor on Tuesday, a role he has held since 2014. Lucas told the House in his comments that the next session would be “different from any other before ”, but members would“ find a way or create a way ”as he promised to continue to move the state forward through the Covid-19 pandemic.
The House Republican Congress suspended its rules to elect Gary Simrill (R-York) for a third term as a majority leader in the House. Caucus rules currently restrict majority leaders to two two-year terms and Simrill has held this position since 2016. Representative Jay West (R-Anderson) will serve as Assistant Majority Leader, replacing retired member Eddie Tallon in this role.
Todd Rutherford (D-Richland) was re-elected to the position of Minority Leader also on Tuesday, a role he has played since 2013. Rutherford faced opposition from Wendy Brawley (R-Richland), who defeated 22 to 18 votes.
On December 2, all 124 members received their committee assignments for the next two years and the committees met later that day to elect their presidents. Chris Murphy (R-Dorchester) was elected president of the House’s powerful Judicial Committee, occupying an open president position since Peter McCoy resigned earlier this year to become a South Carolina attorney. Murphy, a class attorney, serves on the House. since 2011 and stated that redistricting will be one of the most important pieces of legislation that the committee will address in the next two years. Murrell Smith (R-Sumter), Rita Allison (R-Spartanburg), David Hiott (R-Pickens), Bill Sandifer (R-Oconee) and Leon Howard (D-Richland) maintained their positions as mayor. Media, Education, Agriculture, LCI and Medical Affairs Committees, respectively.
Both the Senate and the House will meet again on Tuesday, January 12, 2021, for the first year of a two-year session.