Camden’s Vincent Sheheen spoke to the Chronicle-Independent in September 2008 about the possibility of running for governor in the 2010 election. Then, he said, three things would have to happen for him to actually run: whether or not he felt he could maintain his family obligations -- he is the married father of three boys -- while running a campaign; whether or not he could raise enough money for such a campaign; and if he felt he had enough support from other parts of the state.
Fast-forward 11 months, during which the economic crisis intensified and Gov. Mark Sanford’s behavior in office and out of the country came under fire, and Sheheen has made his decision. In an exclusive interview with the Chronicle-Independent, Sheheen officially announced he is a gubernatorial candidate.
Sheheen, a Democrat, was first elected to the S.C. House of Representatives in 2000, taking the seat his uncle, former Speaker of the House Robert “Bob” Sheheen, held for many years. He was then elected in 2004 to the S.C. Senate, a seat he continues to hold.
While today marks the official launch of his campaign for governor, in February Sheheen became the first “unofficial” candidate when he filed paperwork with the S.C. Ethics Commission. He soon became a vocal critic of Republican Gov. Mark Sanford, especially in April after Sanford delayed accepting stimulus funds for the state. In June, he called for Sanford’s resignation. Sheheen cited the governor’s revelation of an extra-marital affair and what he said at the time was evidence Sanford misled his staff about his whereabouts, used taxpayer dollars to pay for a 2008 S.C. Department of Commerce trip to Argentina to meet his mistress and failed to inform anyone he was leaving the country to meet her again earlier this year as the reasons for his stance.
It is those mounting criticisms of the governor and state government in general that have led to his decision to officially declare himself a candidate now.
“We have gotten to the point where the government is not functioning,” Sheheen said. “There is an opportunity for someone like me to come in and, I hope, make the government work.”
Growing up Sheheen
Vincent Sheheen, 38, was born in Camden to Fred R. and Rose Sheheen.
That fact alone, he said, sets him apart from any other candidate for governor.
“A lot of my (political) ideas stem from growing up in Kershaw County,” Sheheen said. “I’m one of only a few candidates from a rural county like Kershaw. And Kershaw County will play a critical role in determining who will be the next governor. It’s the first time in generations that the governor could be from Kershaw County.”
The late Gov. John Carl West, also from Kershaw County, was governor from 1971 to 1975, nearly 35 years ago.
Sheheen is the only grandson of his generation.
“All of my siblings and cousins are girls,” he said.
That fact led to one of the most important relationships in Sheheen’s life: that with his grandfather, Austin Sheheen Sr., who served as Camden’s mayor for 10 years.
“He led a prominent role in my life. We went fishing together. He had a house on the lake with a garden. I learned valuable lessons from him on how to treat people: he never treated anyone badly, he never lost his temper; he was kind, but he always held his ground,” Sheheen said.
Sheheen’s maternal grandparents, Joseph and Josephine Serio, moved to Camden while he was still in grade school, expanding his local family further. He attended Grace Episcopal Church’s kindergarten and then Camden Primary and Camden Elementary schools.
“Both of my grade school principals are still alive, as is my first-grade teacher, Emily McGuirt, and they continue to be an influence on me,” said Sheheen.
It was Sheheen’s large extended family, however, that would perhaps be his greatest political influence, starting very young in life. Almost everyone was involved in a small business.
“My great uncle, Fred, owned Camden Feed and Seed. Another great uncle, Frank, owned Sheheen Grocery,” said Sheheen.
And Sheheen’s father, Fred R. Sheheen, owned The Camden Company and was one-time publisher of the Camden Chronicle. Sheheen said his first real job was at his father’s Camden Company printing and office supply shop which was located in a portion of the old Dibble Building at Broad and DeKalb streets.
“I was the janitor,” he said. “I cleaned the toilets, mopped and dusted.”
Later, in high school, he became a runner at his Uncle Bob’s law firm of Savage, Royall & Sheheen.
“I got to know lots of business people. It was neat seeing and talking with successful business people,” said Sheheen.
All of those experiences, he said, have given him a great appreciation of the needs of small business owners.
He also counts his education in Camden’s schools for influencing his ability to work with others. Sheheen believes he may be the first candidate for South Carolina governor who attended integrated schools from start to finish, graduating from Camden High School (CHS) in 1989.
“I think that helps me now to work with different kinds of people,” said Sheheen. “All of these people in my life are still here, supporting me. They are why I am who I am in the general assembly -- a person who can bring people together, which has been missing on the state level. One of the best things during the campaign has been to get out to people who haven’t seen a statewide candidate in many years.”
Sheheen said growing up in Kershaw County has allowed him to have an appreciation for all the different types of people in South Carolina because the county’s demographics are reflective of the state’s demographics as a whole.
The road to the State House
After graduating from CHS, Sheheen broke a little bit with family tradition, earning his bachelor’s degree from Clemson University as opposed to the University of South Carolina (USC) or Duke University in North Carolina.
He met his future wife, Amy, while attending Clemson and got married while still in law school at USC. She delivered their first children, twin boys Austin and Joseph, now 13, while he was studying for the bar.
“I only missed one appointment with Amy, but it happened to be the one when she found out we were having twins,” Sheheen said. “She actually came to the university where I was studying to show me the picture. They were born the day after the bar exam.”
Sheheen’s first job following law school was becoming a law clerk for Joe Anderson, a federal judge who had formerly been a state legislator.
“He was from a small town, too, Edgefield. He’s part of why I came back to Camden,” said Sheheen.
After working for Anderson for two years, Sheheen began getting offers -- really good offers -- from major law firms.
“But Judge Anderson told me that when he’d been faced with the same choice, he made the choice to go back to Edgefield. He said it was the best decision he’d ever made, and suggested I do the same,” Sheheen said.
So, Sheheen moved back to Camden, joined his uncle’s law firm, became involved in a number of non-profit organizations and volunteered to read in schools.
Then, in the spring of 2000, Bob Sheheen announced he was not going to run again.
“At that time, I was the prosecutor for the city of Camden. I had never contemplated running for the House, but it seemed like a good opportunity to serve the people of the county and here we are,” he said.
Sheheen won the election and, a month later, his and Amy’s third son, Anthony, was born.
“It’s been a wonderful experience to serve this county,” Sheheen said. “When I’ve spoken to my colleagues, I realize how blessed I’ve been to do that.”
Just a few years later, 2003, Kershaw County’s legendary State Sen. Donald Holland passed away. Sheheen successfully mounted a campaign to win the seat he has held since 2004.
“Being senator has allowed me to serve Kershaw County, Chesterfield -- an even more rural county than Kershaw -- and Lancaster, which has had more of a textile industry than Kershaw. I began to learn more about the challenges we face state-wide and the lack of progress we’ve had that’s affected local communities,” said Sheheen.
Sheheen said everyone in South Carolina has to pull together in order for the state to be successful, something he said has not happened.
State issues
With the success of the entire state at stake, Sheheen said his No. 1 priority as governor would be job creation.
“We have not been effective in job creation or promotion,” said Sheheen. “Part of my platform is to be an active governor with a professionally run Department of Commerce and a Port of Charleston focused on bringing goods in and out of South Carolina instead of just making money.”
Sheheen said higher education is critical to bringing more higher paying jobs to South Carolina.
“Years ago, it cost $9,000 to go to Clemson; now it costs $25,000. We now have the first generation to be priced out of a college education. And we’re not investing in our technical colleges. They are a top selling point for attracting industry,” said Sheheen.
He said the future might belong to the alternative energy industry -- that South Carolina should be made into a place where biofuels and wind power technology will be developed. Sheheen also said the state should increase its investment in nuclear energy to create the high-paying jobs that come with that industry.
“There is no state plan for job creation. We need one,” he said.
Sheheen also wants to see improvements in the state’s health care economy.
“It’s a relatively untapped resource,” he said. “We have the Medical University of South Carolina and growing (health care) systems, but we need to be a destination for health care. Right now, we have to import nurses -- we could be training them here.”
Another point Sheheen made was that South Carolina has to have solutions of “real substance” for small businesses.
“Fifty percent of jobs are created by small business, but we mostly focus on big industry,” Sheheen said.
He is proposing creating a small business division within the Department of Commerce that would assist proprietors with planning and navigating through various permitting processes.
Another major issue for Sheheen is government reform -- something he has said Sanford promised but has failed to deliver.
“I’ve seen some (reform), but we have a great way to go,” said Sheheen. “There’s an opportunity now for a governor who really believes this needs to be accomplished. People know the government’s dysfunctional. I think there’ll be more opportunity in the next four years to fix this. It takes a governor who has vision, who can put people together.”
Sheheen believes he is that candidate.
Other areas of concern to Sheheen include K-12 public education and using the state’s natural resources in a way that both conserves them and yet brings economic success to the state.
Coming home every night
Sheheen had said one of the things that had to happen for him to run for governor was to prove to himself that he could maintain his family obligations. He said despite nearly daily campaign appearances, he has managed to meet that challenge.
“I go home every night even when I’m going around the state. It might be 6 o’clock, it might be 10 o’clock, but I’ve made it home every night,” said Sheheen.
And each weekday morning, he takes his three boys to school.
In what spare time he has, Sheheen likes to be outside, including fishing trips with his sons.
He also likes to read, his taste in books eclectic: classic literature, Russian literature and even science fiction. His favorites, however, are biographies.
“I like to read about American leaders. As you can imagine, growing up here, I especially like the Revolutionary War period and South Carolina history. I also like to read about our governors in the last century,” said Sheheen.
The only type of books he doesn’t like are mysteries.
As for music, Sheheen doesn’t own an iPod, but admitted to having a Willie Nelson CD in his car.
But, he acknowledged, spare time is a precious commodity now.
The Democratic Party primary is in June 2010; the general election just a year from now.
In recent weeks, Sheheen has set up his campaign headquarters -- not in Columbia where, he said, many suggested -- but in Camden, his hometown.
“We purposely did that to maintain the small town feel,” said Sheheen, adding that the office is filled with both paid staff and volunteers.
“I think it’s good for people to know that somebody from a small town can still run for governor, raise more than $800,000 and be the front runner in the Democratic Party.”
(Contact Martin L. Cahn at 432-6157 or camden@ci-camden.com.)
Fast-forward 11 months, during which the economic crisis intensified and Gov. Mark Sanford’s behavior in office and out of the country came under fire, and Sheheen has made his decision. In an exclusive interview with the Chronicle-Independent, Sheheen officially announced he is a gubernatorial candidate.
Sheheen, a Democrat, was first elected to the S.C. House of Representatives in 2000, taking the seat his uncle, former Speaker of the House Robert “Bob” Sheheen, held for many years. He was then elected in 2004 to the S.C. Senate, a seat he continues to hold.
While today marks the official launch of his campaign for governor, in February Sheheen became the first “unofficial” candidate when he filed paperwork with the S.C. Ethics Commission. He soon became a vocal critic of Republican Gov. Mark Sanford, especially in April after Sanford delayed accepting stimulus funds for the state. In June, he called for Sanford’s resignation. Sheheen cited the governor’s revelation of an extra-marital affair and what he said at the time was evidence Sanford misled his staff about his whereabouts, used taxpayer dollars to pay for a 2008 S.C. Department of Commerce trip to Argentina to meet his mistress and failed to inform anyone he was leaving the country to meet her again earlier this year as the reasons for his stance.
It is those mounting criticisms of the governor and state government in general that have led to his decision to officially declare himself a candidate now.
“We have gotten to the point where the government is not functioning,” Sheheen said. “There is an opportunity for someone like me to come in and, I hope, make the government work.”
Growing up Sheheen
Vincent Sheheen, 38, was born in Camden to Fred R. and Rose Sheheen.
That fact alone, he said, sets him apart from any other candidate for governor.
“A lot of my (political) ideas stem from growing up in Kershaw County,” Sheheen said. “I’m one of only a few candidates from a rural county like Kershaw. And Kershaw County will play a critical role in determining who will be the next governor. It’s the first time in generations that the governor could be from Kershaw County.”
The late Gov. John Carl West, also from Kershaw County, was governor from 1971 to 1975, nearly 35 years ago.
Sheheen is the only grandson of his generation.
“All of my siblings and cousins are girls,” he said.
That fact led to one of the most important relationships in Sheheen’s life: that with his grandfather, Austin Sheheen Sr., who served as Camden’s mayor for 10 years.
“He led a prominent role in my life. We went fishing together. He had a house on the lake with a garden. I learned valuable lessons from him on how to treat people: he never treated anyone badly, he never lost his temper; he was kind, but he always held his ground,” Sheheen said.
Sheheen’s maternal grandparents, Joseph and Josephine Serio, moved to Camden while he was still in grade school, expanding his local family further. He attended Grace Episcopal Church’s kindergarten and then Camden Primary and Camden Elementary schools.
“Both of my grade school principals are still alive, as is my first-grade teacher, Emily McGuirt, and they continue to be an influence on me,” said Sheheen.
It was Sheheen’s large extended family, however, that would perhaps be his greatest political influence, starting very young in life. Almost everyone was involved in a small business.
“My great uncle, Fred, owned Camden Feed and Seed. Another great uncle, Frank, owned Sheheen Grocery,” said Sheheen.
And Sheheen’s father, Fred R. Sheheen, owned The Camden Company and was one-time publisher of the Camden Chronicle. Sheheen said his first real job was at his father’s Camden Company printing and office supply shop which was located in a portion of the old Dibble Building at Broad and DeKalb streets.
“I was the janitor,” he said. “I cleaned the toilets, mopped and dusted.”
Later, in high school, he became a runner at his Uncle Bob’s law firm of Savage, Royall & Sheheen.
“I got to know lots of business people. It was neat seeing and talking with successful business people,” said Sheheen.
All of those experiences, he said, have given him a great appreciation of the needs of small business owners.
He also counts his education in Camden’s schools for influencing his ability to work with others. Sheheen believes he may be the first candidate for South Carolina governor who attended integrated schools from start to finish, graduating from Camden High School (CHS) in 1989.
“I think that helps me now to work with different kinds of people,” said Sheheen. “All of these people in my life are still here, supporting me. They are why I am who I am in the general assembly -- a person who can bring people together, which has been missing on the state level. One of the best things during the campaign has been to get out to people who haven’t seen a statewide candidate in many years.”
Sheheen said growing up in Kershaw County has allowed him to have an appreciation for all the different types of people in South Carolina because the county’s demographics are reflective of the state’s demographics as a whole.
The road to the State House
After graduating from CHS, Sheheen broke a little bit with family tradition, earning his bachelor’s degree from Clemson University as opposed to the University of South Carolina (USC) or Duke University in North Carolina.
He met his future wife, Amy, while attending Clemson and got married while still in law school at USC. She delivered their first children, twin boys Austin and Joseph, now 13, while he was studying for the bar.
“I only missed one appointment with Amy, but it happened to be the one when she found out we were having twins,” Sheheen said. “She actually came to the university where I was studying to show me the picture. They were born the day after the bar exam.”
Sheheen’s first job following law school was becoming a law clerk for Joe Anderson, a federal judge who had formerly been a state legislator.
“He was from a small town, too, Edgefield. He’s part of why I came back to Camden,” said Sheheen.
After working for Anderson for two years, Sheheen began getting offers -- really good offers -- from major law firms.
“But Judge Anderson told me that when he’d been faced with the same choice, he made the choice to go back to Edgefield. He said it was the best decision he’d ever made, and suggested I do the same,” Sheheen said.
So, Sheheen moved back to Camden, joined his uncle’s law firm, became involved in a number of non-profit organizations and volunteered to read in schools.
Then, in the spring of 2000, Bob Sheheen announced he was not going to run again.
“At that time, I was the prosecutor for the city of Camden. I had never contemplated running for the House, but it seemed like a good opportunity to serve the people of the county and here we are,” he said.
Sheheen won the election and, a month later, his and Amy’s third son, Anthony, was born.
“It’s been a wonderful experience to serve this county,” Sheheen said. “When I’ve spoken to my colleagues, I realize how blessed I’ve been to do that.”
Just a few years later, 2003, Kershaw County’s legendary State Sen. Donald Holland passed away. Sheheen successfully mounted a campaign to win the seat he has held since 2004.
“Being senator has allowed me to serve Kershaw County, Chesterfield -- an even more rural county than Kershaw -- and Lancaster, which has had more of a textile industry than Kershaw. I began to learn more about the challenges we face state-wide and the lack of progress we’ve had that’s affected local communities,” said Sheheen.
Sheheen said everyone in South Carolina has to pull together in order for the state to be successful, something he said has not happened.
State issues
With the success of the entire state at stake, Sheheen said his No. 1 priority as governor would be job creation.
“We have not been effective in job creation or promotion,” said Sheheen. “Part of my platform is to be an active governor with a professionally run Department of Commerce and a Port of Charleston focused on bringing goods in and out of South Carolina instead of just making money.”
Sheheen said higher education is critical to bringing more higher paying jobs to South Carolina.
“Years ago, it cost $9,000 to go to Clemson; now it costs $25,000. We now have the first generation to be priced out of a college education. And we’re not investing in our technical colleges. They are a top selling point for attracting industry,” said Sheheen.
He said the future might belong to the alternative energy industry -- that South Carolina should be made into a place where biofuels and wind power technology will be developed. Sheheen also said the state should increase its investment in nuclear energy to create the high-paying jobs that come with that industry.
“There is no state plan for job creation. We need one,” he said.
Sheheen also wants to see improvements in the state’s health care economy.
“It’s a relatively untapped resource,” he said. “We have the Medical University of South Carolina and growing (health care) systems, but we need to be a destination for health care. Right now, we have to import nurses -- we could be training them here.”
Another point Sheheen made was that South Carolina has to have solutions of “real substance” for small businesses.
“Fifty percent of jobs are created by small business, but we mostly focus on big industry,” Sheheen said.
He is proposing creating a small business division within the Department of Commerce that would assist proprietors with planning and navigating through various permitting processes.
Another major issue for Sheheen is government reform -- something he has said Sanford promised but has failed to deliver.
“I’ve seen some (reform), but we have a great way to go,” said Sheheen. “There’s an opportunity now for a governor who really believes this needs to be accomplished. People know the government’s dysfunctional. I think there’ll be more opportunity in the next four years to fix this. It takes a governor who has vision, who can put people together.”
Sheheen believes he is that candidate.
Other areas of concern to Sheheen include K-12 public education and using the state’s natural resources in a way that both conserves them and yet brings economic success to the state.
Coming home every night
Sheheen had said one of the things that had to happen for him to run for governor was to prove to himself that he could maintain his family obligations. He said despite nearly daily campaign appearances, he has managed to meet that challenge.
“I go home every night even when I’m going around the state. It might be 6 o’clock, it might be 10 o’clock, but I’ve made it home every night,” said Sheheen.
And each weekday morning, he takes his three boys to school.
In what spare time he has, Sheheen likes to be outside, including fishing trips with his sons.
He also likes to read, his taste in books eclectic: classic literature, Russian literature and even science fiction. His favorites, however, are biographies.
“I like to read about American leaders. As you can imagine, growing up here, I especially like the Revolutionary War period and South Carolina history. I also like to read about our governors in the last century,” said Sheheen.
The only type of books he doesn’t like are mysteries.
As for music, Sheheen doesn’t own an iPod, but admitted to having a Willie Nelson CD in his car.
But, he acknowledged, spare time is a precious commodity now.
The Democratic Party primary is in June 2010; the general election just a year from now.
In recent weeks, Sheheen has set up his campaign headquarters -- not in Columbia where, he said, many suggested -- but in Camden, his hometown.
“We purposely did that to maintain the small town feel,” said Sheheen, adding that the office is filled with both paid staff and volunteers.
“I think it’s good for people to know that somebody from a small town can still run for governor, raise more than $800,000 and be the front runner in the Democratic Party.”
(Contact Martin L. Cahn at 432-6157 or camden@ci-camden.com.)
