SC House Rep Jason Elliott announces run for Senate

Devyani Chhetri, Greenville News
Updated ·2 min read

South Carolina House Representative Jason Elliott announced a run for Senate District 6 on Monday.

In a press release, Elliott said he was running to succeed Senator Dwight Loftis, who will not be seeking reelection next year. "Greenville County needs an experienced leader who gets results in the Statehouse. My record in the Statehouse shows that with seriousness and hard work, it's possible to deliver conservative victories and improve our community. I'll bring the same fight to the state Senate," the Greenville Republican said.

Elliott, who was the state's first openly gay lawmaker, was first elected in 2016 in Greenville’s heavily conservative District 22 which includes Bob Jones University. He ran a competitive race against a longtime incumbent Wendy Nanney, the daughter of a Bob Jones University dean and campaigned against Nanney's record of absenteeism.

"South Carolina had the highest percentage growth recently in the last year, and so we're at a pivotal moment in Greenville," Elliott said. "There's a sense of urgency to fix our roads and manage growth. It's now or never."

Rep. Jason Elliott, R-Greenville, a co-sponsor of the bill H.5068 which would provide the sales tax exemption on security purchases to public schools and districts, charter schools and districts, and public and private institutions of higher education, speaks at a press conference with educators and other supporters of the bill at Southside Christian School Monday, February 24, 2020.

In 2018, Elliott evaded two other primary challenges and established a solid foothold. He has since then played an influential role in committees like the House Judiciary Committee and the 2021 redistricting committee, responsible for creating South Carolina's political map.

Elliott's voting record has shown support for bond reform, declaring fentanyl as a Schedule I drug, the six-week abortion ban and expanding school choice. Last session, Elliott took the House floor to pass the embattled Hate Crimes bill. He argued that the perception that South Carolina was against enhancing penalties for bias-motivated crimes was bad for the business climate. "It's a message that we don't put up with hate," Elliot said then. "It's a message that South Carolinians can be proud of."

Elliott, an attorney by trade, graduated from Clemson University and the University of South Carolina School of Law. He has experience working as an assistant solicitor and district director for former Congressman Jim DeMint.

The Greenville native is not alone in the race for the Senate seat. On Dec. 29, Greenville County Councilman Steve Shaw announced his intention to run for the seat.

Devyani Chhetri covers SC politics for the Greenville News. You can reach her at dchhetri@gannett.com or @ChhetriDevyani on X.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: SC House Rep Jason Elliott announces run for Senate