1. James Hovis Hodges was born on November 19,1956 and is an American businessman, attorney, and politician who served as the 114th governor of South Carolina from 1999 to 2003.
20 Facts About Jim Hodges
1. 2.
James Hovis Hodges was born on November 19,1956, to parents George N and Betty H Hodges.
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Jim Hodges grew up in Lancaster, South Carolina, near the North Carolina border.
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Jim Hodges attended Davidson College but later transferred to the University of South Carolina, where he completed a BSBA in 1979 and earned election to Phi Beta Kappa.
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In 1982, Jim Hodges received a JD from the University of South Carolina School of Law.
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From 1983 to 1986, Jim Hodges served as Lancaster County Attorney.
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At age 30, Jim Hodges first won an election in a December 1986 special election for the 45th district seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives vacated by the late Tom Mangum.
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Jim Hodges entered the 1998 gubernatorial election in South Carolina an underdog but took advantage of controversy and missteps by incumbent Republican governor David Beasley, namely Beasley's indecisiveness on allowing a Confederate flag to fly at the state capitol and call to eliminate video poker.
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Jim Hodges became the first challenger to defeat a sitting governor since the South Carolina constitution first allowed consecutive terms in 1980.
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Several hours later, Jim Hodges signed the South Carolina Heritage Act which the General Assembly had passed as a compromise so that the Confederate flag could be moved from the state capitol's dome to its grounds.
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Jim Hodges made efforts to reform land use policy in South Carolina.
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Jim Hodges signed several executive orders which created task forces and interagency councils.
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Jim Hodges instituted the construction of the Ravenel Bridge in Charleston, which is North America's longest cabled spanned bridge.
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Jim Hodges received criticism in his first year in office for his management of the Hurricane Floyd evacuation, particularly his decision not to make Interstate 26 one-way westbound.
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Jim Hodges received blame for financial problems with the state Department of Commerce and long lines at Division of Motor Vehicles offices.
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Jim Hodges had met with recruits, something he was prohibited from doing as an ex-oficio trustee of the university.
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In 2002 Jim Hodges ran for reelection Against former US Representative Mark Sanford.
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Since leaving office as governor, Jim Hodges has served as a senior advisor at McGuire Woods Consulting, LLC, and as partner in the affiliated law firm of McGuireWoods, LLP, and is based in Columbia, South Carolina.
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Jim Hodges endorsed General Wesley Clark's campaign in the 2004 Democratic presidential primaries.
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In 2007, Jim Hodges publicly supported Stephen Colbert's attempt to run for president in the South Carolina primaries, and even offered himself up as a vice presidential choice should the comedian actually win the nomination.