There’s never been anybody in the history of the Republican Party quite like Tim Scott.

A descendant of enslaved people, the second son of a single mother, a bachelor, a teetotaler and an erstwhile insurance salesman, the convivial, 57-year-old South Carolina senator is a uniquely successful Black conservative from the South.In 1994, running for a seat on the Charleston County Council while volunteering on the congressional campaign of a young Mark Sanford, Scott was starstruck meeting Jack Kemp and Newt Gingrich at an Elks Lodge. He initially had gone to the local Democratic Party headquarters to express his interest in the seat on the council in which they said, “get in line,” he once told Tim Alberta. So he ran as a Republican — and became in early 1995 the first Black Republican elected to any office in South Carolina since 1902. After losing in his very attempt at state senate, he didn’t run again until 2008 and won. While Scott didn’t join the Congressional Black Caucus due to him not wanting to center his campaign around race,Scott joined the Women’s Caucus, citing his background as “the product of a powerful single mother.” Since joining the Senate, Senator Scott has been a national leader on efforts to bring opportunity to every American family. His signature legislation creating Opportunity Zones was passed as part of the 2017 tax reform package, and has the potential to bring billions of dollars of private investment into distressed communities across the country.

As he continues to lead on the implementation of the Opportunity Zones initiative, Senator Scott also plays a critical role in issues regarding workforce development, education and diversity. Whether it’s tackling the skills gap, making sure children have access to the educational environment best suited for them, or working to bring everyone to the table to find solutions. Early in his tenure in the United States Senate, Scott embarked on an unusual and sometimes “undercover” listening tour around South Carolina, chopping chicken, bagging groceries, sweeping floors, riding the bus. “Most of the time I don’t identify myself because it’s easy to have a polite conversation with a U.S. senator, but you can have a real conversation with the dude on the bus,” he told a reporter from BET.com in 2014. “Sometimes it’s better to just be the dude on the bus.” Senator Scott will keep going undercover, hearing real issues and fighting for South Carolinians every single day he serves as the only black republican in the U.S. Senate. His accomplishments, strides and impact he’s had despite his upbringing is what we think makes him a great american! 

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