Gloves come off as Chellis voted in

Summerville legislator is new state treasurer

COLUMBIA — The state treasurer's job doesn't often conjure up images of sex, drugs and third-world countries.

But on Friday, the governor and the Legislature pulled out all stops, and rules of decorum, in a nasty fight to replace former Treasurer Thomas Ravenel with Summerville state Rep. Converse Chellis.

Accusations of sexual harassment and misogyny swirled through the Statehouse, and bloggers even pulled out the old memo-gate scandal to try to muddy already cloudy waters.

Gov. Mark Sanford said the speed of the election made South Carolina look like a "banana republic."

"The General Assembly owed it to the people who elected it to not rush into this decision, and instead to make this a more transparent and deliberative process," Sanford said. "Unfortunately, they chose a path that guaranteed one of its own being installed as the next treasurer."

Bubbling beneath the surface as Chellis landed the job in a 122-24 vote is the governor's desire to do away with the Budget and Control Board, a goal that now could be out of his reach.

Chellis, 63, a certified public accountant and legislator since 1997, was viewed by most as being an ally of the Legislature for future votes on the board, which controls the state's purse strings. He resigned from his seat immediately following the vote and was sworn in as treasurer through January 2011.

Sanford wanted Sen. Greg Ryberg, R-Aiken, or Charleston County Council Chairman Tim Scott, a Republican, to fill the seat left vacant when Ravenel resigned July 24 following his indictment on a federal cocaine charge.

Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell was quick to respond to Sanford's criticism.

"He better read the constitution," said McConnell, R-Charleston. "We would have shirked our responsibility if we had not voted."

McConnell said the Legislature followed procedure when scheduling the election 10 days after Ravenel's resignation. He said if the legislators had not elected a new treasurer Friday, it would have thrown the state into a constitutional crisis.

Dirty politics surrounding the race, McConnell said, only solidified Chellis' chances. In the days leading up to the vote, anonymous material circulated, bringing attention to a 7-year-old lawsuit in which a former business partner accused Chellis of multiple wrongdoings, including fraud and inappropriate conduct toward female workers.

The suit was ultimately settled out of court and withdrawn, and many lawmakers said they regarded it as untrue.

A Web log run by former Sanford staffer Will Folks posted Thursday quoted four unidentified legislators or former legislators accusing House Majority Leader Jim Merrill, R-Daniel Island, as being the author of a scandalous memo from 2001 that outlined a dress code for female pages that made short skirts a requirement and underwear optional.

Merrill is a Chellis supporter. Folks insinuated on his blog that as the purported author of the memo, Merrill supported the behavior toward women Chellis was accused of in the lawsuit.

Merrill denied involvement in the memo Friday and challenged the accuracy of Folks' blog. Folks is a former press spokesman for Sanford who has frequently posted critical information about lawmakers.

"That is an outright, blatant lie," Merrill said. "It is the dumbest, most ludicrous thing."

Merrill, like McConnell, said he did not know who was responsible for the efforts to discredit Chellis and link him to the memo.

Folks, who denied any animosity toward Merrill, said he stood by his report.

"Let's see some proof that anything I've written has been wrong," he said.

The governor's office had no comment on the blog.

Rep. Chip Limehouse, R-Charleston, said he would have liked to see the Legislature adjourn before taking a vote on Friday. An attempt to do so failed in a 134-11 vote.

Limehouse said he wanted to see the firestorm between Sanford and the legislators end.

"We're at point now where the General Assembly and the governor need to stop this back and forth," he said. "We ought to all settle down and work together. It's time for us all to join together and lead."

In another shake-up Friday, Henry White, a former Sanford staff member, resigned as director of the Budget and Control Board to take a job at a law practice. He was Sanford's pick to lead the board when he was appointed in January.

Sanford is chairman of the five-member board.

Roll call

The Legislature elected Rep. Converse Chellis, R-Summerville, on Friday as the new state treasurer. Chellis received 122 votes, while Sen. Greg Ryberg, R-Aiken, received 24, including his own.

How area lawmakers voted:

Democrats voting for Rep. Converse Chellis

House: Breeland, Charleston; R. Brown, Hollywood; Jefferson, Pineville; Knight, St. George; Mack, North Charleston; and Stavrinakis, Charleston.

Senate: Ford, Charleston; Matthews, Bowman; and Pinckney, Ridgeland.

Republicans voting for Chellis

House: Dantzler, Goose Creek; Harrell, Charleston; Hinson, Goose Creek; Merrill, Daniel Island; Scarborough, Charleston; and Umphlett, Moncks Corner.

Senate: McConnell, Charleston; and Scott, Summerville.

Republicans voting for Sen. Greg Ryberg

House: Limehouse, Charleston.

Senate: Campsen, Isle of Palms; and Grooms, Bonneau.

Not voting

Senate: Cleary, Murrells Inlet.

House: Hagood, Sullivan's Island; Miller, Pawleys Island; Whipper, North Charleston; and Young, Summerville.