Gov. Henry McMaster and his then-agriculture adviser Cody Simpson visit Edgefield County on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, to survey damage from Hurricane Helene. (Photo courtesy of the governor's office)
COLUMBIA — A candidate for agriculture commissioner, who got President Donald Trump’s endorsement before he even entered the race, has broken fundraising records for the typically low-profile position with the help of some of South Carolina’s biggest names.
Cody Simpson, former agriculture adviser to Gov. Henry McMaster, collected almost $410,000 in 49 days, plus received about $32,000 worth of non-cash donations, according to his first quarterly fundraising report, submitted Thursday.
Simpson’s campaign touts that tops records set by retiring Commissioner Hugh Weathers for both a quarter and entire election cycle.
The campaign pointed to Weathers’ fundraising for the 2022 GOP primary, when he reported about $136,000 raised in the fourth quarter of 2021 and $317,050 total for the cycle. Weathers, who’s led the agency for nearly 22 years, easily beat two GOP challengers in his last election. His biggest haul was actually in 2014, when he reported raising nearly $363,000 total by June 30 of that year.
Retiring SC agriculture commissioner has spent 2 decades encouraging people to buy local
Simpson’s contributor list reads like a who’s who in South Carolina politics and business.
They include former Wall Street financier-turned-philanthropist Darla Moore of Lake City, who gave $1,000; another major philanthropist Anita Zucker, CEO of InterTech Group, who gave $1,500; and Columbia developer Bill Stern, chairman of the state Ports Authority’s board, who gave the $3,500 maximum both personally and through his business.
Moore, the namesake of the University of South Carolina’s business school, is a major benefactor for schools across South Carolina. Her philanthropy includes funding scholarships at Francis Marion University, where Simpson received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Funding from the Darla Moore Foundation supports a new bachelor’s degree in forestry at the public university in Florence starting this fall.
The president of Simpson’s alma mater, Fred Carter, also gave $1,000.
Other donors to Simpson’s campaign include Columbia attorney Henry McMaster Jr., the governor’s son, who gave $2,500.
Gov. McMaster threw his “full endorsement and support” behind Simpson in early February. Within hours, Trump followed with his own endorsement, urging Simpson to run. Simpson officially launched his bid two weeks later.
Simpson left McMaster’s office as chief executive assistant last May to take a Trump administration appointment as the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency’s executive director for South Carolina. He left that job to seek election to lead the state Department of Agriculture.
Other big names donating to Simpson include former House Speaker David Wilkins, the former U.S. ambassador to Canada; Jean Leatherman, wife of the late Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman; and Rose Newton, wife of House Judiciary Chairman Weston Newton. Each of them gave $1,000.
Millionaire businessman Rom Reddy, a Republican running for governor; and Greenville developer Wallace Cheves also chipped in with the maximum-per-cycle $3,500. Builder Stewart Mungo, of Mungo Homes, gave $1,500.
Simpson said he’s “truly honored” by the support. But what truly matters to him, he said, is that “everybody now is talking about South Carolina agriculture.”
The down-ballot race has become unusually competitive.
Simpson is among four Republicans competing for the GOP nomination to replace Weathers.
Until January, Fred West of Batesburg-Leesville was the only announced candidate. West works as director of market development at the Department of Agriculture and was a longtime executive at the poultry processing company Amick Farms. Weathers endorsed him last spring. West’s fourth-quarter report shows he collected about $187,000 in donations through Dec. 31.
Clarendon County farmer Jeremy Cannon launched his bid in January, emphasizing his lifetime of farming experience in rural Turbeville.
Danny Ford II of Central, son of Clemson University’s first national championship football coach, jumped in the race after Simpson in February.
The winner of the four-way GOP primary June 9 will face Democrat DeShawn Blanding and two minor-party candidates in November. Blanding, of Manning, is a former policy analyst for the U.S. House Agriculture Committee.
Simpson is so far the only candidate to file first-quarter fundraising numbers. Candidates have until Wednesday to file reports for the quarter ending March 31.
It’s been 16 years since a Democrat was on the ballot. The last Democrat in the job, Leslie Tindal, switched parties during his third term, then retired in 2002 after 20 years in the role. Weathers was appointed to the position in 2004 by then-Gov. Mark Sanford after Charles Sharpe, a former Aiken County legislator, was indicted on federal extortion and money laundering charges less than two years after his win.
Courtesy of South Carolina Daily Gazette
