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|position=President of the Senate
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|name=[[Harvey S. Peeler Jr.]]
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|party=Republican Party (United States)
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Revision as of 02:10, 7 December 2021

South Carolina General Assembly
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
HousesSenate
House of Representatives
Leadership
Harvey S. Peeler Jr. (R)
since January 8, 2019
Jay Lucas (R)
since December 2, 2014
Structure
Seats170 voting members:
46 Senators
124 Representatives
Senate political groups
  Republican (30)
  Democratic (16)
House political groups
  Republican (81)
  Democratic (43)[1]
Elections
Last Senate election
November 2020
Last House election
November 2020
Meeting place
South Carolina State House, Columbia
Website
http://www.scstatehouse.gov/
Governor Donald Russell addressing the Assembly in 1964

The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and the upper South Carolina Senate. All together, the General Assembly consists of 170 members. The legislature convenes at the State House in Columbia.

Prior to the 1964 federal Reynolds v. Sims decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, each county doubled as a legislative district, with each county electing one senator and at least one representative. Moreover, each county's General Assembly delegation also doubled as its county council, as the state constitution made no provision for local government.

The "one man, one vote" provision of Reynolds v. Sims[2] caused district lines to cross county lines, causing legislators to be on multiple county councils. This led to the passage of the Home Rule Act of 1975, which created county councils that were independent of the General Assembly. However, the General Assembly still retains considerable authority over local government. As a result, the legislature still devotes considerable time to local matters, and county legislative delegations still handle many matters that are handled by county governments in the rest of the country.[3]

There are 124 members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, who are elected every two years, and the South Carolina Senate has 46 members, elected every four years concurrent to the presidential election. For both houses, there are no term limits. The General Assembly meets in joint session to elect judges, with all 170 members having an equal vote in such elections.

Officers

Senate

South Carolina Senate officers
Position Name Party
President of the Senate Thomas C. Alexander Republican
Majority Leader A. Shane Massey Republican

House of Representatives

South Carolina House of Representatives officers
Position Name Party
Speaker pro tempore Tommy Pope Republican
Majority Leader Gary Simrill Republican

Historic Party Control

Statehouse Party Control since 1868
Year[a] Senate

Majority

House


Majority

Governor

Control

1868 Republican Republican Republican
1870
1872
1874
1876 Democratic Democratic
1878 Democratic
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1930
1934
1938
1942
1946
1950
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974 Republican
1978 Democratic
1982
1986 Republican
1990
1994 Republican
1998 Republican Democratic
2002 Republican
2006
2010
2014
2018
2022 TBD

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Years reflected in chart match gubernatorial elections

References

  1. ^ "South Carolina Legislature Online - House of Representatives".
  2. ^ "Reynolds v. Sims 377 U.S. 533 (1964)". Justia Law. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
  3. ^ "Scoppe: The Home Rule Act that didn't really allow home rule". thestate. Retrieved May 12, 2016.