Second Republican competes for Surfside's S.C. House seat

Nelson Hardwick, a Surfside Beach civil engineer, announced Monday he will run for the Republican nomination to the state House District 106 seat.

Rep. Tom Keegan, R-Surfside Beach, will not run again. Surfside Beach Councilman Allen Deaton has also said he will seek the office on the GOP ticket.

Hardwick, 52, grew up on a tobacco farm in Aynor and said that as a native of the county who has lived in both rural and growing sections of it, he can bring a special viewpoint to the House.

Another reason he thinks he has something to offer is his career in engineering, first with the state Department of Health and Environmental Control, then Grand Strand Water & Sewer Authority before going into the private sector in 1980 to form a firm that works on subdivision infrastructure design.

"I've had a part in how we've gotten where we are," Hardwick said.

He wants to help Horry County get back more of the money it pumps into the state coffers, and to do that he thinks state government must be restructured to give the governor more authority.

"This state has been run by the legislature for too long," Hardwick said.

Lawmakers from other areas have no incentive to help Horry County, he said, but because of its size, "no governor can ignore us in the future."

Hardwick lives at 714 Cedar Drive N. and has been married to Martina Hardwick for 34 years. They have three grown children and four grandchildren.