Health & Fitness
Senator Spends Campaign Money on "Charity," Taxes
Over the past six years, longtime S.C. Sen. Hugh Leatherman – the Senate's most powerful lawmaker – spent more than $600,000 from his campaign account, though he faced no opponent in either the 2008 or 2012 elections.
A review by The Nerve of the Florence County Republican’s campaign expenditures filed with the State Ethics Commission show that he spent more than $200,000 from 2008 through last year on donations to various nonprofit organizations and churches; membership dues to two Florence economic-development organizations; office expenses for the Florence County Republican Party and Senate GOP Caucus; and flowers, frames, Christmas gifts and meals for mostly unnamed constituents and staff.
Leatherman’s generosity with campaign donors’ money over the six-year period included:
- $2,050 to the Senior Citizens Association in Florence County, which operates a senior center named after Leatherman;
- $16,569 on “staff,” “teacher” and “constituent” meals and receptions at the swank, members-only Capital City, Palmetto and former Summit clubs, located within walking distance of the State House. No attendees are identified in those listings;
- $17,500 to The School Foundation in Florence, a nonprofit organization that supports Florence County School District 1. Leatherman’s wife, Jean Leatherman, president of ERA Leatherman Realty, is listed on the foundation’s website as a member of the organization’s board of directors; and
- $90,061 for ornaments and gifts – mainly Christmas ornaments – for unnamed constituents. The items were purchased from the Texas-based Ne’Qwa Co., which was acquired in 2012 by Missouri-based Precious Moments, according to online records. The number or types of ornaments aren’t described in Leatherman’s disclosure forms. An online collectibles site describes the Ne’Qwa ornaments as a “centuries-old tradition of painting on the inside of glass”; one price listing showed individual ornaments ranging from $31 to $85.
During the six-year period, Leatherman spent all but $24,220 of the $625,890 in campaign contributions he received, The Nerve’s review found. Last year, which is part of the 2016 election cycle, he spent more than $62,000, though he took in less than $7,000, records show.