Rep. Viers Resigns from SC House Effective Immediately

In a 5:25 speech on the floor of the SC House, Representative Thad Viers (R-Dist. 68-Horry County) resigned his seat effective immediately.

Becoming emotional at times during his remarks, Viers informed the chamber that, “Tomorrow morning, the Marlboro solicitor will be seeking an indictment against me for the personal, and now public relationship between me and my ex-girlfriend Candace Bessinger.”

Resigning, according to Viers, was the “honorable thing” to do for the House, a body in which he served for 10 years.

Viers was a seen as a consistent conservative vote in the House. He noted, “Most of the time, the people in this room and the people in the audience know how I’m gonna vote before I have a chance to.”

“I find it shocking the amount of resources being spent on this politically-motivated matter over a few love letters,” Viers said.

His relationship with Bessinger, granddaughter of barbecue restaurateur Maurice Bessinger, ended in the summer of 2011. Personal emails chronicling Viers’ attempts to repair his relationship with Bessinger have been prominently published in other outlets. Bessinger filed harassment charges against Viers in January 2012 as a result of those emails.

Viers said his service in the South Carolina House has been an honor, but “that because of this politically-motivated situation I find myself in, I must now focus all of my efforts, and therefore I will be unable to faithfully execute the duties of my office and hereby today tender my resignation immediately from the South Carolina House of Representatives.”

Prior to the charges levied against him by Bessinger, Viers was considered the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for SC’s new 7th Congressional District seat. He served on the House Judiciary Committee, most recently chairing the General Laws Subcommittee and the Special Laws Subcommittee prior to that.

Listen to the full audio of Rep Viers’ resignation speech HERE.