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Rex Rice

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Rex Fontaine Rice (born May 9, 1957) is an American politician and businessman currently serving as the senator for South Carolina's 2nd Senate District, a position he has held since 2016. He previously served as the representative for House District 26 in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1994 to 2010. Known for his fiscal conservatism, Rice has advocated for state control over education and environmental issues, the repeal of the No Child Left Behind Act, and the abolition of income tax in favor of increased sales taxes. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Rex Rice
Member of the South Carolina Senate
from the 2nd district
Assumed office
November 14, 2016
Preceded byLarry A. Martin
Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives
from the 26th district
In office
1994–2010
Preceded byJim Mattos
Succeeded byEric Bikas
Personal details
Born (1957-05-09) May 9, 1957 (age 67)
Pensacola, Florida
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Ruth Britts
​
(m. 1982)​
Children2
Alma materAnderson College
University of South Carolina
OccupationPolitician, businessman

S.C. House of Representatives (1994-2010)

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Rice was first elected to represent South Carolina State House District 26 in 1994.[1] He did not seek re-election in 2010, instead opting to run for South Carolina's 3rd Congressional District when Gresham Barrett stepped down to run for Governor of South Carolina in the 2010 election.[2]

As a house representative, Rice was a recognized fiscal conservative.[3] He advocated for the idea that education and environment issues should be left entirely to the states. An example of this was his advocacy for the repeal of the No Child Left Behind Act.[4] Additionally, he argued for the abolition of income tax in favor of expanded regressive tax policies such as the increase of sales tax.[5]

S.C. Senate

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Rice has represented the 2nd Senate District (parts of Pickens County) since 2016, when he defeated longtime incumbent Larry Martin during the Republican primary.

As of April 2024, Rice serves on the Corrections and Penology Committee, the Education Committee, the Judiciary Committee, the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee, and the Transportation Committee.[1]

Since 2022, he has opposed efforts to pass a hate crime bill in South Carolina.[6]

In February 2023, he filed a resolution to limit congressional terms.[7] This would make South Carolina one of 34 states that would need to call a national convention to amend the US Constitution.

In November 2023, he sponsored Constitutional Carry legislation to relax gun control laws by lowering the age of carrying a handgun and getting rid of requiring permits, training, and background checks.[8]

Reproductive Rights

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As a Senator, Rice has supported a near-total ban on abortion, without exceptions for rape or incest.[9][10] Instead, he supports exceptions only in cases where a mother's life might be at risk.[11]

Controversies

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Dark Money Ads

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Rice tried (and failed) to unseat Larry Martin in 2012. In 2016, when Rice re-challenged Martin, the Republican primary became highly contentious. During the run-off, dark money ad donors funded attack ads against Martin, though Rice denied any role in their funding.[12]

Personal Life

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Rice lives in Easley, South Carolina with his wife Ruth. He owns a construction company.[3] He is Presbyterian. He graduated from Anderson University and the University of South Carolina.[1]

Electoral history

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Year Office Type Party Main opponent Party Votes for Rice Result Swing Ref.
Total % P. ±%
1992 S.C. Representative General Republican Jim Mattos[13] Democratic 3,594 46.01% 2nd N/A Lost Hold [14]
1994 General Republican Jim Mattos[13] Democratic 3,409 53.74% 1st +7.73% Won Gain [15]
1996 General Republican Write-in N/A 5,269 100.00% 1st +46.26% Won Hold [16]
1998 General Republican Write-in N/A 5,508 98.48% 1st -1.52% Won Hold [17]
2000 General Republican Write-in N/A 6,868 98.52% 1st +0.04% Won Hold [18]
2002 General Republican Write-in N/A 5,823 98.56% 1st +0.04% Won Hold [19]
2004 General Republican Write-in N/A 8,360 99.57% 1st +1.01% Won Hold [20]
2006 General Republican Write-in N/A 5,685 99.37% 1st -0.20% Won Hold [21]
2008 General Republican Write-in N/A 9,371 99.17% 1st -0.20% Won Hold [22][23]
2010 U.S. Representative Rep. primary Republican Jeff Duncan Republican 16,071 19.47% 3rd N/A Lost N/A [2][24][25][26]
2012 S.C. Senator General Petition Larry A. Martin[13] Republican 13,164 35.31% 2nd N/A Lost Hold [27][28][29]
2016 Rep. primary Republican Larry A. Martin[13] Republican 4,641 33.30% 2nd N/A Runoff N/A [30]
Rep. primary runoff Republican Larry A. Martin[13] Republican 6,022 54.21% 1st N/A Won N/A [24][31][32][33][34]
General Republican Write-in N/A 36,944 98.64% 1st N/A Won Hold [35]
2020 General Republican Write-in N/A 44,116 98.10% 1st -0.54% Won Hold [36]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Member Biography: Senator Rex F. Rice". South Carolina General Assembly. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  2. ^ a b Davenport, Jim (March 22, 2009). "Field expands to fill vacancy to be left by Barrett". The Post and Courier. Associated Press. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  3. ^ a b South Carolina General Assembly (May 27, 2010). "H. 5039: Honorable Rex Fontaine Rice". SCStateHouse.gov. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  4. ^ Adcox, Seanna (May 26, 2010). "GOP candidates for SC 3rd District blast Obama". Spartanburg Herald Journal. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  5. ^ "Tax talk tonight in Summerville". The Post and Courier. November 9, 2009. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  6. ^ Chhetri, Devyani (March 2, 2022). "Could the lack of a hate crimes bill hurt job growth in South Carolina?". The Greenville News. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  7. ^ Selleck, Stacey (February 7, 2023). "South Carolina Senator Rex Rice Files Resolution to Term Limit Congress - U.S. Term Limits". Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  8. ^ Llerena, Rey (November 14, 2023). "Gun safety organization holds meeting to discuss potential new 'Constitutional carry' bill". WYFF. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  9. ^ Paquette, Danielle (May 23, 2023). "As S.C. abortion vote nears, GOP women rebuke the men: 'It's always about control'". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  10. ^ "Larry Martin, Rex Rice Debate Issues". Easley, SC Patch. October 24, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  11. ^ Pollard, James (August 31, 2022). "Abortion ban reaches SC Senate despite GOP factions". The Post and Courier. Associated Press. Retrieved June 24, 2024.
  12. ^ Smith, Tim (October 10, 2018). "Statehouse corruption probe: Upstate senator was victim of veiled attacks, grand jury says". The Greenville News. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d e Incumbent seeking re-election
  14. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (1992-1993)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. June 30, 1993. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  15. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (1994-1995)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  16. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (1995-1996)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  17. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (1997-1998)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  18. ^ "South Carolina Election Report 2000" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  19. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (2002)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  20. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (2004)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  21. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (2006)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  22. ^ "South Carolina Election Report (2008)" (PDF). South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  23. ^ "2008 General Election: State House of Representatives District 26". South Carolina Election Commission. June 1, 2009. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  24. ^ a b Staff, ABC Columbia Site (June 29, 2016). "Sen. Larry Martin Loses Re-Election Bid". ABC Columbia. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  25. ^ "South Carolina 3rd District Race Profile - Election 2010 - The New York Times". archive.nytimes.com. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  26. ^ "SC 2010 Republican and Democratic Primary: U.S. House of Representatives District 3 - REP". South Carolina State Election Commission. June 22, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  27. ^ "At a glance: Primary election confusion sorted out". WYFF. June 8, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  28. ^ "Woman breaks into South Carolina's all-male Senate". USA TODAY. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  29. ^ "SC 2012 General Election Results: State Senate District 2". South Carolina Election Commission. April 19, 2013. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  30. ^ "South Carolina 2016 Republican and Democratic Primary: State Senate, District 2 - REP". South Carolina Election Commission. July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  31. ^ Barnett, Ron (June 29, 2016). "Expert: Upstate loses political clout with Martin's loss". The Greenville News. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  32. ^ Self, Jamie (June 28, 2016). "4 SC Senate incumbents fall in runoffs". The State. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  33. ^ "The Latest: Senate incumbents defeated in primary runoffs". AP News. June 29, 2016. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  34. ^ "South Carolina 2016 Republican and Democratic Primary Runoff: State Senate, District 2 - REP". South Carolina Election Commission. July 5, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  35. ^ "South Carolina 2016 Statewide General Election: State Senate, District 2". South Carolina Election Commission. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  36. ^ "South Carolina 2020 Statewide General Election: State Senate, District 2". South Carolina Election Commission. June 30, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
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South Carolina House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives
from the 26th district
1994–2010 		Succeeded by
South Carolina Senate
Preceded by Member of the South Carolina Senate
from the 2nd district
2016–present 		Incumbent
 
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