Henry McMaster Net Worth, Family, wife, Education, Children, Age, Biography, Political Career

Henry McMaster Biography

Henry Dargan McMaster is an American politician, attorney, and member of the Republican Party who has been the 117th governor of South Carolina since January 24, 2017.

McMaster worked for U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, in private practice, and as a federal prosecutor. Appointed United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina by President Ronald Reagan in 1981, he gained attention for investigating South Carolina marijuana smugglers in Operation Jackpot. McMaster was the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in South Carolina in 1986, losing to incumbent Democrat Fritz Hollings. He was then defeated for lieutenant governor of South Carolina by Democrat Nick Theodore in 1990.

McMaster chaired the South Carolina Republican Party from 1993 to 2002. He was elected attorney general of South Carolina in 2002 and reelected in 2006. In 2010 McMaster ran for governor but lost to Nikki Haley in the Republican primary. In 2011, Haley appointed him to the South Carolina Ports Authority, a position from which he resigned after being elected lieutenant governor of South Carolina in 2014. McMaster succeeded to the office of governor when Haley resigned to become the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. He won a full four-year term in the 2018 gubernatorial election after winning a runoff for the Republican nomination and defeating Democratic nominee James E. Smith Jr. in the general election.

Henry McMaster Net Worth

Henry McMaster Net Worth is $ 300 Thousand in 2022.

Henry McMaster Family, Parents

McMaster was born on May 27, 1947, in Columbia, South Carolina. He is the eldest son of John Gregg and Ida Dargan (Pet) McMaster.

Henry McMaster Wife, Children

McMaster has been married to Peggy McMaster since 1978. They have two adult children and reside in Columbia, South Carolina. He owns an English Bulldog named Mac. McMaster and his family attend First Presbyterian Church in Columbia.

Henry McMaster Career and Achievement

United States Attorney

Upon Thurmonds recommendation, President Ronald Reagan nominated McMaster as United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina in 1981—Reagans first nomination for U.S. Attorney. The Senate confirmed McMaster on May 21, 1981. He headed the South Carolina Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee from 1981 to 1985.

During his tenure, McMaster created the federal drug task force Operation Jackpot to investigate South Carolina marijuana smugglers. Operation Jackpot ultimately arrested more than 100 people for crimes related to marijuana and hashish trafficking. McMaster held numerous press conferences during the operation and gained publicity through interviews and comments. His actions were criticized as political, with journalist Lee Bandy writing, "no one can recall any other U.S. attorney being so public-relations conscious" and noting that McMaster had held more press conferences and news releases than all his predecessors combined. McMaster completed his term as U.S. Attorney on December 31, 1985.

Attorney General of South Carolina

McMaster placed first in the Republican primary for attorney general, with 126,164 votes (42.41%), ahead of State Senator and former judge Larry Richter and attorney Jon E. Ozmint. He defeated Richter in the runoff, 162,014 votes (55.8%) to 128,271 (44.2%). In the general election, McMaster defeated Democratic attorney and former Director of the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services Stephen K. Benjamin, 601,931 votes (55.5%) to 482,560 (44.5%). He was reelected in 2006, unopposed in both the Republican primary and the general election.

Run for Governor, Ports Authority

In 2010 McMaster ran for governor, but finished third in the Republican primary with 71,187 votes (16.94%), ahead of Lieutenant Governor André Bauers 52,324 (12.45%) but behind U.S. Representative Gresham Barretts 91,461 (21.76%) and State Representative Nikki Haleys 205,360 (48.86%). He immediately endorsed Haley, who had been the front-runner throughout the race and defeated Barrett in the runoff by a landslide.

In 2011, Haley appointed McMaster to the South Carolina Ports Authority, succeeding Harry Butler Jr. McMaster left the Ports Authority in 2015 and was replaced by Kurt D. Grindstaff.

Campaign finance Violation

On January 6, 2015, the Ethics Commission of South Carolina accused McMaster of accepting about $70,000 in donations to his 2010 campaign for governor, exceeding South Carolinas limit for donations by $51,850. The commission released documents stating that McMaster accepted these extra funds to help settle campaign debt. In September 2015, the commission refused to dismiss the complaint and McMasters attorney indicated McMaster was likely to settle. In March 2016, the commission ordered McMaster "to repay $72,700 in excess campaign contributions from his 2010 run for governor and pay a $5,100 fine."

Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina

McMaster filed to run for lieutenant governor of South Carolina on March 27, 2014. He received 44% of the vote in a four-way Republican Party primary, forcing a runoff between him and Mike Campbell, son of former Governor Carroll A. Campbell Jr. McMaster defeated Campbell with 63.6% of the vote and faced Democratic State Representative Bakari Sellers in the general election. Upon his inauguration, he succeeded Democrat Yancey McGill. During the campaign, Sellers challenged McMaster to renounce his 30-year membership in Columbias Forest Lake Country Club, a private country club alleged to exclude black members; in response, McMasters campaign manager said that the club "[had] no policies of racial discrimination" and that McMaster "would not be a member if it did." On November 4, 2014, McMaster was elected lieutenant governor with 58.8% of the vote.

McMaster was elected on a separate ticket from Governor Haley, the last time a lieutenant governor was elected in this manner; as of 2018, candidates for governor and lieutenant governor run on the same ticket. During the 2016 presidential campaign, McMaster was an early and avid supporter of Donald Trump. He claimed to be the first elected politician in the United States to support Trump. After Trump won the Republican nomination, McMaster delivered the nominating speech at the Republican National Convention.

Governor of South Carolina

Elections

On November 23, 2016, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Haley as Ambassador to the United Nations. On January 24, 2017, the Senate confirmed Haley. Later that day, she resigned as governor and McMaster assumed the governorship. Inaugurated at the age of 69 years and 8 months, McMaster is the oldest person ever to assume the office of governor in South Carolina. McMaster served the remainder of Haleys term, which expired in January 2019. Per the South Carolina constitution, McMaster is eligible to serve as governor until January 2027 if he is reelected in 2022. Before ascending to the office of governor, McMaster declared in September 2016 that he would run in the 2018 election. McMaster won the 2018 election to serve his first four-year term.

After McMasters first year as governor, The State evaluated his performance. It praised him for adding 17,000 jobs in the state, his accessibility to state legislators, and his handling of Hurricane Irma in 2017, but criticized his "lack of leadership", citing as an example his veto of a gas-tax increase that would have paid for road repairs and replacements for aging school buses, which members of both parties slammed, including McMasters gubernatorial primary rival Catherine Templeton. The State summed up McMasters first year as "mixed".

2018

On June 12, 2018, McMaster placed first in the Republican gubernatorial primary, with 155,072 votes. But since that was 42.3% of the vote, less than a majority, he faced John Warren in a runoff. On June 26, McMaster won the runoff with about 52% of the vote. McMaster chose businesswoman Pamela Evette as his running mate, not incumbent Lieutenant Governor Kevin L. Bryant, who ran against McMaster for the gubernatorial nomination. Trump endorsed McMaster. McMaster defeated Democratic nominee James Smith in the general election with 54% of the vote.

2022

McMaster has declared his intention to seek reelection in 2022 and is being challenged by former U.S. Representative Joe Cunningham.

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