Chad Connelly
Former S.C. GOP Party Chairman Chad Connelly announced Monday that he will run for the congressional seat being vacated by Mick Mulvaney, who is awaiting confirmation as President Donald Trump's budget chief.
“Washington is broken and I want to do my part to try and fix it," Connelly said in a statement. He plans to support 12-year term limits in Congress and a pro-business environment.
The Prosperity native and Army veteran worked in engineering before starting his own business. While he was chairing the state Republican party, Connelly was tapped as the Republican National Committee’s first national director of faith engagement in 2013.
“If we want better jobs and a safer homeland, we must first make way for new voices," he said. "Our founding fathers framed this Republic as a government of the people, by the people and for all the people under God.”
Connelly faces a growing GOP field for the congressional seats that stretches from the Charlotte suburbs of Rock Hill down to Sumter and Newberry. Among those who have announced for the race are state Reps. Tommy Pope and Ralph Norman, S.C. State Guard commander Tom Mullikin, education activist Sheri Few and attorney Kris Wampler.
A special primary election will be held 11 weeks after Mulvaney resigns with the general election coming 18 weeks after the seat is vacated.
