Edwards was elected the first Republican governor of the state since Daniel Henry Chamberlain in 1876. 1974 was otherwise a dismal year for Republicans nationally because of the Watergate scandal and lingering opposition to the Vietnam War, both of which may have contributed to the primary defeat of Westmoreland, commander of U.S. forces during the late 1960s.
Later career and deathedit
At that time South Carolina governors were not allowed to serve two terms in succession, so Edwards was unable to seek reelection in 1978. In 1981, U.S. president Ronald Reagan appointed Edwards secretary of energy. He resigned two years later to serve as the President of the Medical University of South Carolina, a post he held for 17 years. In 1997, Edwards was inducted into the South Carolina Hall of Fame. In 2008, he endorsed Mitt Romney for his party's presidential nomination.[3]
As governor and thereafter, Edwards developed a close friendship with his Democratic predecessor, John C. West, whom he had earlier accused of undermining the Haynsworth nomination.
In 1994, the state legislature renamed a portion of the Mark Clark Expressway that crosses the Wando River the James B. Edwards Bridge.[4] In 2010, the new MUSC dental building and the dental school was renamed the James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine. Edwards died at his home in Mount Pleasant on December 26, 2014, from complications from a stroke. He was 87.[5][6]
james, edwards, james, burrows, edwards, june, 1927, december, 2014, american, politician, administrator, from, south, carolina, first, republican, elected, governor, south, carolina, since, post, civil, reconstruction, 1870s, later, served, secretary, energy,. James Burrows Edwards June 24 1927 December 26 2014 was an American politician and administrator from South Carolina He was the first Republican to be elected governor of South Carolina since the post Civil War Reconstruction era in the 1870s He later served as the U S secretary of energy under Ronald Reagan James EdwardsOfficial portrait 19813rd United States Secretary of EnergyIn office January 23 1981 November 5 1982PresidentRonald ReaganPreceded byCharles DuncanSucceeded byDonald Hodel110th Governor of South CarolinaIn office January 21 1975 January 10 1979LieutenantBrantley HarveyPreceded byJohn WestSucceeded byRichard RileyMember of the South Carolina Senatefrom Charleston CountyIn office 1973 1975Personal detailsBornJames Burrows Edwards 1927 06 24 June 24 1927Hawthorne Florida U S DiedDecember 26 2014 2014 12 26 aged 87 Mount Pleasant South Carolina U S Political partyRepublicanSpouseAnn Darlington 1951 2014 EducationCollege of Charleston BS University of Louisville DMD Military serviceBranch serviceUnited States NavyUnitUnited States Maritime ServiceBattles warsWorld War II Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Political career 3 Later career and death 4 References 5 External linksEarly life and career editEdwards was born in Hawthorne Florida and was an officer in the U S Maritime Service during World War II He continued his service in the U S Naval Reserve after the war Edwards received a bachelor s degree in 1950 at the College of Charleston where he was a brother of Pi Kappa Phi fraternity He received a D M D in 1955 from the University of Louisville and did a dental internship at the University of Pennsylvania Returning to Charleston Edwards established a dentistry practice in 1960 that specialized in oral surgery He subsequently held a variety of positions associated with dentistry in the community Political career editIn 1970 Edwards became chairman of the Republican Party of South Carolina s 1st congressional district As a supporter of Republican gubernatorial nominee U S Representative Albert Watson of South Carolina s 2nd congressional district Edwards claimed that Watson s Democratic opponent John C West worked covertly in 1969 against the nomination of South Carolina s Clement Haynsworth to the United States Supreme Court The Nixon nominee failed in the U S Senate 55 to 45 on grounds of alleged bias against organized labor and a lack of supports for civil rights Edwards predicted that as governor West would install an ultra liberal minority dominated state government citing West s political ties to Hubert H Humphrey and longtime NAACP executive director Roy Wilkins 1 Edwards first ran for office in 1971 in a special election to fill the vacancy in the Charleston centered 1st congressional district caused by the death of longtime Democrat L Mendel Rivers Edwards narrowly lost to one of Rivers s staffers Mendel Jackson Davis 2 but gained enough name recognition from his strong showing that he was elected to the South Carolina Senate as a Republican from white majority Charleston County Two years later he entered the governor s race as a long shot candidate Edwards upset General William Westmoreland in the Republican primary and defeated Democratic Congressman William Jennings Bryan Dorn of South Carolina s 3rd congressional district in the general election Dorn had become the Democratic nominee after the winner of the runoff election Charles D Pug Ravenel was disqualified on residency grounds Edwards was elected the first Republican governor of the state since Daniel Henry Chamberlain in 1876 1974 was otherwise a dismal year for Republicans nationally because of the Watergate scandal and lingering opposition to the Vietnam War both of which may have contributed to the primary defeat of Westmoreland commander of U S forces during the late 1960s Later career and death editAt that time South Carolina governors were not allowed to serve two terms in succession so Edwards was unable to seek reelection in 1978 In 1981 U S president Ronald Reagan appointed Edwards secretary of energy He resigned two years later to serve as the President of the Medical University of South Carolina a post he held for 17 years In 1997 Edwards was inducted into the South Carolina Hall of Fame In 2008 he endorsed Mitt Romney for his party s presidential nomination 3 As governor and thereafter Edwards developed a close friendship with his Democratic predecessor John C West whom he had earlier accused of undermining the Haynsworth nomination In 1994 the state legislature renamed a portion of the Mark Clark Expressway that crosses the Wando River the James B Edwards Bridge 4 In 2010 the new MUSC dental building and the dental school was renamed the James B Edwards College of Dental Medicine Edwards died at his home in Mount Pleasant on December 26 2014 from complications from a stroke He was 87 5 6 References edit Charleston News amp Courier September 25 1970 1971 special election results from South Carolina s 1st District South Carolina endorsements of Mitt Romney www aboutmittromney com Retrieved May 19 2019 S 1170 Session 110 1993 1994 South Carolina Legislative Services Agency Retrieved December 26 2014 James B Edwards a Long Shot as Governor of South Carolina Dies at 87 Click Carolyn December 26 2014 Former Gov James Edwards dies The State Archived from the original on December 29 2014 Retrieved December 26 2014 External links editSCIway Biography of James Burrows Edwards NGA Biography of James Burrows Edwards SC Hall of Fame James B Edwards at Find a Grave Appearances on C SPANParty political officesPreceded byAlbert Watson Republican nominee for Governor of South Carolina1974 Succeeded byEdward YoungPolitical officesPreceded byJohn West Governor of South Carolina1975 1979 Succeeded byRichard RileyPreceded byCharles Duncan United States Secretary of Energy1981 1982 Succeeded byDonald Hodel Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title James B Edwards amp oldid 1178338205, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
