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House race candidates seek community solutions


BY EDWARD C. FENNELL
Of The Post and Courier Staff

In a Statehouse contest that almost didn't happen, Republican state Rep. Wallace Scarborough faces Democratic challenger Frank Procaccini in District 115 on James Island.

Scarborough, 45, vice president/corporate secretary of Atlantic Coast Life Insurance Co., was elected to the House in 2000. Procaccini, 57, owns Alternative Real Estate Co., a fee-for-service brokerage firm, and is seeking elected office for the first time.

Procaccini chided the state Republican Party for trying to keep him off the ballot. He became a substitute candidate after the Democrats' original candidate withdrew. The Republican Party protested, and the GOP-dominated elections board denied Procaccini a spot on the ballot. A court challenge overturned that decision.

Procaccini said state legislators should seek community-oriented solutions to problems, to ensure real progress while holding down costs. He said the state could do more to make healthcare affordable, support education and prevent child and spouse abuse.

Having lived and worked overseas, including eight years training factory workers in Japan, Procaccini said he has seen the benefits of governments that are more directly involved with communities.

Healthcare costs could be controlled through neighborhood clinics, he said. "People can go to the clinic instead of running to an emergency room."

Procaccini said crime could be reduced and police kept closer to those they serve by having numerous small police substations, each staffed by three officers. Two officers could patrol while the third stayed at the station, he said.

Procaccini also said state government should be more eager to fund sidewalks and bicycle paths.

Scarborough, who chairs the House Banking Subcommittee, said his legislative experience and close working relationships with other key legislators and Gov. Mark Sanford make him best suited to represent the district.

Scarborough cited his support for education and said he authored the bill to bring the Powerball multi-state lottery to South Carolina, which boosted revenues for education.

He said he obtained funding that helped James Island schools get rid of trailers, secured $30,000 for preservation of the Morris Island lighthouse and helped pass a dolphin protection act.

Scarborough said he will continue to support Sanford's legislative agenda, including restructur-ing state government and tort reform.

The candidates agreed that more bicycle paths could help ease traffic congestion.

FRANK PROCACCINI
DEMOCRAT
AGE: 57
RESIDENCE: James Island
FAMILY: Single.
EDUCATION: B.A. in political science and history, Roger Williams College (now University), in Bristol, R.I.; additional college courses
PHONE: 819-3632
OCCUPATION: Owner of Alternative Real Estate Co.
POLITICAL EXPERIENCE: None


WALLACE SCARBOROUGH (I)
REPUBLICAN
AGE: 45
RESIDENCE: James Island
FAMILY: Wife, Mary Ann, and two sons
EDUCATION: B.S. in education, The Citadel, 1981
PHONE: 795-9777
OCCUPATION: Vice president and corporate secretary for Atlantic Coast Life Insurance Co.
POLITICAL EXPERIENCE: Seeking third two-year term in S.C. House of Representatives


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