Verne Smith resigns

Sen. Verne Smith, one of South Carolina's most influential and colorful legislators, has resigned his seat because of lingering poor health.

Smith, 81, stayed away from Columbia this past session because of illness. The Greer Republican underwent gall bladder surgery last year.

"I'm not jumping any fences," Smith said Wednesday with a laugh. "I kept thinking I'd get better and get to go back, but I can't. It's my duty to resign and let someone else have the seat, although I don't know if they'll find anybody to do a better job."

Leading the list of possible replacements is Rep. Lewis Vaughn, R-Greer, who decided not to seek a 10th term in the state House. Vaughn said Wednesday that he will be a candidate for the seat.

"Sen. Smith always said he'd like to see me do that if he's not there," Vaughn said. "I'm sure others will be interested, so we'll have to let the people decide."

The special election to replace Smith will most likely coincide with the Nov. 7 general election.

Smith was first elected to the Senate in 1972. He is second only to Sen. John Drummond in age and years of service.

During his tenure, Smith watched as Greer grew from a blip on the map into a boomtown. The change in the landscape, both physically and politically, wasn't lost on Smith and in 2000 he bolted from the Democratic Party.

Smith's defection gave the Republican Party control of the Senate and the Legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. It also created one of Sen. Jim Ritchie's favorite stories about his colleague.

Ritchie, R-Spartanburg, said that Smith's son, who had made an unsuccessful bid for office, tried to convince his father not to switch parties.

"His son said 'I don't know about changing parties,'" Ritchie said. Ritchie said that Smith replied, "Well, I don't know about losing elections, and you know all about that."

Drummond, D-Greenwood, said that Smith was always the champion of the state's poor citizens.

"He's been my friend all these years, and I'm sorry to see him go," Drummond said. "He always looked after the less fortunate, you can bet your boots on that."

Drummond said that when he was chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Smith was the head of the health care subcommittee. He would fight for every dollar he could get, Drummond said.

"I'd ask for his report, and he'd say, 'I'm going to take care of those raggedy-(a--) children,'" Drummond said. "And he made sure they were taken care of."

Smith said not being able to lookout for the state's needy would be the toughest part of his retirement.

"I'm going to miss being able to help people who can't help themselves, helping people get Medicaid and things like that," Smith said. "Having the influence I have now can help, but I think I'm going to lose some of that power."

Sen. Glenn Reese said he would miss Smith's guidance, both in the Senate and in their private enterprises. Reese is owner of the Spartanburg Krispy Kreme franchise, while Smith built a tire empire in Greer.

Reese serves on the Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee, which Smith chaired. He said Smith never forced members to vote on legislation just so they would be on the record either favoring or opposing an issue.

"He always did common sense things that were good for the state and never got caught up in the political whim of the day," said Reese, D-Boiling Springs. "If Verne was for it, it was a good bill for South Carolina or he wouldn't even discuss it. Bad legislation never came out of his committee."

Reese said that Smith had a unique way of putting people in their place. He told Reese that when he was growing up on his family farm, he was once stopped by a state trooper while driving a peach truck.

"A horsefly started swarming around the highway patrolman, and it came up about what horseflies normally swarm around," Reese said. "He told the highway patrolman that horseflies don't make mistakes."

Sen. Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence, said that whoever takes Smith's place is going to "have some very large shoes to fill." Leatherman entered the Senate eight years after Smith and they became fast friends, having dinner together nearly every night during the session.

Now he'll be looking for a new dinner companion.

"It will never be the same as all those years eating with Sen. Smith," he said.

Robert W. Dalton can be reached at 562-7274 or bob.dalton@shj.com.