State Sen. Verne Smith of Greer, a fixture in the Legislature for more than three decades and longtime defender of the state's most vulnerable citizens, resigned Wednesday, citing a lengthy illness.

State Rep. Lewis Vaughn of Greer, the chairman of Greenville County's legislative delegation, said he plans to run for Smith's seat. Vaughn announced earlier this year that he wouldn't run for a 10th term in his House post this year.

By law, filings for Smith's seat will begin July 21 and continue through July 31, said Butch Bowers, chairman of the state Election Commission. Primary elections will be held Sept. 19, he said, and a final election will coincide with the general election Nov. 7.

The 81-year-old Republican missed the entire legislative session due to what he described as a serious blood infection. Smith said he decided Wednesday that it was time to say goodbye.

Advertisement

"I was hoping I'd get better to come back, but it doesn't look like I am," he said. "I don't think it's right to hold that position unless I am able to attend the session. So I'm going to hang it up."

Smith's resignation is a second blow to the Upstate's political influence in the last year, with the region having lost former House Speaker David Wilkins of Greenville in 2005 when he resigned to accept President Bush's appointment as ambassador to Canada.

"Nobody wanted to see this day come," said state Rep. Harry Cato, a Travelers Rest Republican and chairman of the House Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee. "It's never good when you lose that much seniority in a one-year span."

Smith, who has held office since 1973, ranked second in seniority in the seniority-dominated Senate.

"No award or honor Sen. Smith received will ever serve as an adequate memorial to what Sen. Smith has meant to the Upstate and to the state of South Carolina," said Sen. Glenn McConnell, Senate president pro tempore.

"Instead, that distinction will rest in the hearts of the many South Carolinians, especially the very young and the old, he has helped over the years."

Chairman of the Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee, Smith has been praised for his work over many years in the areas of education and health care. He also is credited with helping Gov. Carroll Campbell bring BMW to Greer.

Former Greer mayor Don Wall said Smith's greatest single accomplishment was his help in securing the land for BMW.

"Very few people could have persuaded all the people who sold land to BMW to sell, and it was critical that they get a large enough contiguous piece in order to build the plant," he said.

"They left their homes, and that's asking a lot of people."

Dr. Kyle Allen, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Greer where Smith's family were members for generations, said, "There will not be another Verne Smith. He is a churchman, a statesman, a family man and a friend, and he has done more to glorify God while bettering the lives of South Carolinians than anyone else I know."

Smith was accessible and took the time to learn peoples' names, said Adamy Diaz Carpenter, a Greer businesswoman. "Hopefully he'll stay active in the Greer community," she said.

Suzanne Shennan, coordinator of the J. Verne Smith Human Resources Center in Greer, said Smith brought social service agencies from Greenville and Spartanburg counties together under one roof, making it possible for citizens who couldn't travel out of town to receive services.

"Without him, we never would have had this," she said. "For the community's sake, we certainly are going to feel the loss because he's been an advocate of all people and the most honest politician I know -- with a heart of gold."

Even though he was sidelined this year, Smith said he was still willing to do what he could by phone.

"They haven't been timid about calling me asking for help," he said, laughing. "I love helping people. But I'm just about past the point of being able to do that."

Smith said while he made the decision Wednesday, "I knew it was coming."

Among Republicans, Smith is fondly remembered as the Democrat whose conversion to the GOP in 2001 switched control of the Senate to the Republican Party and gave the GOP control over the General Assembly for the first time since Reconstruction.

State Sen. David Thomas, a Greenville County Republican, said Smith wrestled with the decision for a long time. Thomas said the party promised to treat him with respect and to retain his seniority if he switched.

Though he could have asked then for the chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee, Thomas said, he deferred to Sen. Hugh Leatherman, who remains chairman of that panel. Smith's move was rewarded with a phone call from President-elect George W. Bush.

Thomas said Smith could be a formidable adversary but also a staunch ally.

"He could be very, very tender and very, very tough," he said.

Vaughn said, "Verne could do more at 10 percent than most people can do at 100 percent."

State Sen. Ralph Anderson said while he knew of Smith's illness, his announcement still surprised him.

"He was one of my stand-bys," Anderson said. "When I couldn't get things through, I went to him and he got them through for me."

Smith helped forge the compromise to remove the Confederate battle flag from atop the Statehouse dome and also helped find funding for the Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities, the Peace Center for the Performing Arts, Greenville Technical College and human resource centers in Greenville, Greer and Marietta.

"Whether it was his help in securing BMW for the Upstate or his role in creating a Republican majority in the Senate, through his three decades of service, Sen. Smith's legacy is one that will be remembered for many years to come," said Joel Sawyer, a spokesman for Gov. Mark Sanford.

Smith came to the Senate as a Democrat and Greer businessman already seasoned in leadership through church offices and service through the Greer Public Works Commission. He helped get Lake Robinson built as a water-supply source.

State Sen. John Drummond, a Greenwood County Democrat who began serving in the Senate six years before Smith, said he will always remember Smith for looking after the health care needs of children and the elderly.

Vaughn described Smith as a "statesman."

"He never had any personal agenda about anything," he said. "He always wanted to do what was right and what was best for his constituents. He never put himself ahead of anyone."

Smith is the recipient of the Order of the Palmetto and three honorary doctorates for his work in the areas of health care, education and public service. The Senate voted in 2004 to hang his portrait in the Statehouse.