Barrett Announces Run for Governor
By: Rudolph Bell
The Greenville News
March 5, 2009

U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett made it official Wednesday: He’s running for governor.

And the Westminster Republican said economic development is his top issue for the 2010 race.

“It’s all about jobs,” Barrett said. “It’s all about economic development and bringing an economy to South Carolina that is second to none.”

Other Republicans considering bids to succeed term-limited Gov. Mark Sanford are Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer and Attorney General Henry McMaster.

A fourth Republican, Brent Nelsen, a political science professor at Furman University, said last week he plans to raise money for a possible campaign.

On the Democratic side, state Sen. Vincent Sheheen of Camden has also announced plans to raise money for a possible campaign.

Barrett, 48, graduated from The Citadel and served as a captain in the Army before returning to Westminster, his hometown in Oconee County, to run his family’s furniture store. He served three terms in the South Carolina House before being elected to Congress in 2002. Since then, he’s been re-elected three times to represent the 3rd Congressional District.

Barrett opposes abortion, supported George W. Bush for president and has advocated for a new nuclear reactor at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in his district.

He and his wife, Natalie, have three children: Madison, 21; Jeb, 19; and Ross, 17.

Barrett told The Greenville News that economic development is his No. 1 issue and that he thinks South Carolina can become a national leader in the field of energy.

“If we are going to really turn this economy around, if we are going to empower people, one of the key factors has to be breaking our dependency on oil,” Barrett said. He favors new nuclear plants such as the one Duke Energy Corp. plans in Cherokee County, as well as the development of hydrogen, wind and so-called “clean coal” as energy sources.

“I think we can lead in all those areas,” Barrett said.