# John Courson

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**John E. Courson** (born November 21, 1944) is an American former politician. He served as a [Republican](/source/Republican_Party_(United_States)) member of the [South Carolina Senate](/source/South_Carolina_Senate), representing the 20th District from 1985 to 2018. He resigned after pleading guilty to a common law misconduct charge in office.[2]

## Early life and education

John Courson was born on November 21, 1944, and graduated from the [University of South Carolina](/source/University_of_South_Carolina) in 1968.

## Career

He has served as a Republican state senator for South Carolina from 1985 to 2018. In 1998, he ran for [Comptroller General of South Carolina](/source/Comptroller_General_of_South_Carolina), but lost to [Jim Lander](/source/Jim_Lander).[3]

He was elected President Pro Tempore of the [South Carolina Senate](/source/South_Carolina_Senate) on March 13, 2012,[4] but resigned this office on June 4, 2014, to avoid becoming [Lieutenant Governor](/source/Lieutenant_Governor_of_South_Carolina), a weak position that needed to be filled for six months before a new Lieutenant Governor was elected [in 2014](/source/South_Carolina_elections,_2014).[5]

### Resignation

In March 2017, during the [South Carolina Statehouse corruption investigation](/source/South_Carolina_Statehouse_corruption_investigation), Courson was indicted on ethics charges for mishandling campaign funds and subsequently suspended from office.[6] He resigned June 4, 2018, after pleading guilty to such charges.[2]

### Personal life

He is married to Elizabeth Poinsett Exum, and they have three children: James Poinsett, Elizabeth Boykin, and Harris Russell. He is [Episcopalian](/source/Episcopal_Church_(United_States)).

## References

1. ["South Carolina Legislature Online - Member Biography"](https://www.scstatehouse.gov/member.php?code=0422727222)

1. ["Richland Sen. John Courson Enters Guilty Plea, Resigns from Office"](https://www.wltx.com/article/news/politics/richland-sen-john-courson-enters-guilty-plea-resigns-from-office/101-561267486). *[WLTX](/source/WLTX)*. June 4, 2018.

1. Strope, Leigh (1998-11-05). ["Candidates edgy waiting on tally"](https://www.newspapers.com/clip/103089588/the-charlotte-observer/). *The Charlotte Observer*. p. 68. Retrieved 2022-07-01. – via [newspapers.com](/source/Newspapers.com)

1. Smith, G. N. (March 13, 2012). ["Columbia senator is Senate's new top dog"](https://web.archive.org/web/20190123225012/https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/election/article14400488.html). *The State*. Archived from [the original](https://www.thestate.com/news/politics-government/election/article14400488.html) on 2019-01-23.

1. ["COLUMBIA, SC: Courson resigns SC Senate leadership post in spat with Lt. Gov. McConnell (Update) | the Buzz | the State"](https://web.archive.org/web/20140727031233/http://www.thestate.com/2014/06/04/3487341/courson-resigns-senate-leadership.html). Archived from [the original](http://www.thestate.com/2014/06/04/3487341/courson-resigns-senate-leadership.html) on 2014-07-27. Retrieved 2014-07-26.

1. Monk, John (March 16, 2017). ["SC state Sen. Courson indicted on misconduct allegations, vows to fight the charges"](https://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article139060943.html). *The State*. Retrieved 2023-05-03.

## External links

- [Project Vote Smart - Senator John E. Courson (SC)](http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=3945) [dead link] profile
- *Follow the Money* - John E. Courson - [2006](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200640&c=426974) [2004](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200440&c=59506) [2002](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200240&c=24780) [2000](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200040&c=378450) [1998](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=199840&c=378223) [1996](http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=199640&c=377896) campaign contributions
- Gaither, Tanita & Holland, Ashleigh (2018-06-04). ["Suspended SC Sen. Courson enters guilty plea, resigns from office"](https://www.wistv.com/story/38341662/suspended-sc-sen-courson-enters-guilty-plea-resigns-from-office). *www.wistv.com*. Retrieved 2023-09-10.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [John Courson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Courson) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Courson?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.