Rex Rice

Rex Rice
Member of the South Carolina Senate from the 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office November 14, 2016
Preceded by	Larry A. Martin
Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 26th district
In office 1994–2010
Preceded by	Jim Mattos
Succeeded by	Eric Bikas
Personal details
Born	(1957-05-09) May 9, 1957 Pensacola, Florida
Party	Republican
Spouse	Ruth Britts ​ (m. 1982)​
Children	2
Alma mater	Anderson College University of South Carolina
Occupation	Politician, businessman

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.

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

Rice was first elected to represent South Carolina State House District 26 in 1994. 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.

As a house representative, Rice was a recognized fiscal conservative. 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. Additionally, he argued for the abolition of income tax in favor of expanded regressive tax policies such as the increase of sales tax.

S.C. Senate

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.

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

In February 2023, he filed a resolution to limit congressional terms. 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.

Reproductive rights

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

Controversies

Dark money ads

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.

Personal life

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

Electoral history

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

External links

• Richard Cash for Senate