Joe Cunningham | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromSouth Carolina's1st district | |
| In office January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Sanford |
| Succeeded by | Nancy Mace |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Kendrick Cunningham (1982-05-26)May 26, 1982 (age 43) Caldwell County,Kentucky, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Bill Cunningham (father) |
| Education | College of Charleston Florida Atlantic University (BS) Northern Kentucky University (JD) |
Joseph Kendrick Cunningham (born May 26, 1982) is an American lawyer and politician who was theU.S. representative forSouth Carolina's 1st congressional district from 2019 to 2021.
A member of theDemocratic Party, Cunningham narrowly defeatedRepublicanstate representativeKatie Arrington in the2018 general election for South Carolina's 1st congressional district. After one term in Congress, he lost his2020 re-election bid in another narrow race to Republican state representativeNancy Mace. He was then the Democratic nominee in the2022 South Carolina gubernatorial election, losing to incumbent Republican governorHenry McMaster.[1]
Cunningham was born inCaldwell County, Kentucky, and grew up inKuttawa, Kentucky.[2] He graduated fromLyon County High School in 2000. Cunningham attended theCollege of Charleston for two years before transferring toFlorida Atlantic University in 2002, where he obtained hisBachelor of Science inocean engineering in 2005.[3][4][5]
After five years as an ocean engineer with a consulting company inNaples, Florida,[3] Cunningham spent some time learning Spanish in South America,[4] then enrolled in law school atNorthern Kentucky University'sSalmon P. Chase College of Law in 2011 and graduated in 2014.[3][5] He then worked as a construction attorney for Charleston firm Lyles & Lyles and co-owned a yoga studio with his wife before campaigning for political office.[6]
In July 2017, Cunningham announced his candidacy for theUnited States House of Representatives inSouth Carolina's 1st congressional district.[4][6] Cunningham won the nomination with 71.5% of the vote.[7][8]
Cunningham expected to face Republican incumbentMark Sanford. However, Sanford was defeated in the Republican primary bystate RepresentativeKatie Arrington. Cunningham defeated Arrington with 50.7% of the vote, marking the first time since1986 that South Carolina Democrats had flipped a U.S. House seat. His victory was widely considered a majorupset.[9][10][11]
While Arrington carried four of the district's five counties, Cunningham prevailed by winningCharleston County by almost 17,000 votes–more than four times the overall margin of 4,000 votes.[12] Cunningham became the first Democrat to represent the Charleston-based district since 1981.[13] He was also the first white Democrat to win a House seat in theDeep South sinceJohn Barrow won reelection in 2012.[citation needed]
In 2020, Cunningham narrowly lost his seat toRepublicanstate RepresentativeNancy Mace. Once a solidly Republican district, the 1st district had become competitive in recent elections due to the realignment of Charleston's suburban population to theDemocratic Party. However, increased turnout in the heavily conservativeBeaufort area undermined this trend, allowing Mace to overcome Cunningham's margin inCharleston County.[14]
In his first vote as a U.S. Representative, Cunningham declined to backNancy Pelosi forSpeaker of the House. Cunningham instead voted for Rep.Cheri Bustos ofIllinois.[15]
Cunningham was a member of theBlue Dog Coalition, a group of Democrats who present themselves as moderate to conservative.[16]
On March 8, 2019, whileNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration assistant administrator for fisheries Chris Oliver was testifying at aNatural Resources Water, Oceans and Wildlife Subcommittee hearing on the effects ofseismic testing onright whales, Cunningham blasted anair horn to demonstrate how disruptive commercial air guns were to whales. Cunningham said that the sound of commercial air guns was up to 16,000 times louder than an air horn.[17]
Cunningham stopped short of endorsing an impeachment inquiry againstPresident Trump after theUkraine allegations emerged, claiming that a partisan rush to impeach the President would be bad for the country, but that if the allegations against Trump were true, they "represent a clear threat to the Constitution, our national security and the democratic process".[18][19] On October 31, 2019, however, Cunningham voted in favor of a resolution to lay out rules to proceed with an impeachment inquiry of President Trump.[20] On December 16, Cunningham announced that he would support both articles of impeachment pending in the House of Representatives, saying "At the end of day, this is simply about the rule of law, whether we're a country with laws or not and what type of precedent we want to set for future presidents."[21] On December 18, 2019, Cunningham voted for both articles of impeachment against Trump.[22]
Two bills introduced by Cunningham were ultimately signed into law: The Great American Outdoors Act (August 2020),[23] a bipartisan conservation bill that permanently and fully funds the Land and Water Conservation Fund and addresses deferred maintenance needs in national parks and other public lands,[24] and the VA Telehearing Modernization Act (April 2020),[25] which enables veterans to participate remotely in appeals hearings before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.[26]
In his farewell speech to the House of Representatives in December 2020, Cunninghamtoasted a can of beer to "the spirit of bipartisanship and cooperation", saying that "for the betterment of this country, we have to come together, we have to sit down and listen to each other, and maybe even have a beer."[27]GovTrack reports that during his two years in the U.S. House, Cunningham joinedbipartisan bills the second most often and had the fifth least left-leaning voting record compared to other house Democrats.[28]
Cunningham was the Democratic nominee forSouth Carolina governor, winning the June 14 primary with 57% of the vote. Cunningham was defeated by incumbent Republican governorHenry McMaster in the November election, 58% to 41%.[35]
On March 16, 2023, Cunningham announced the launch of Cunningham Consulting, a consulting firm specializing in public affairs, government relations and advocacy.[36] In May 2023, Cunningham penned an op-ed forThe Post and Courier in which he expressed support for thecentrist political organizationNo Labels and their efforts to run a "unity ticket" in the2024 U.S. presidential election; at the end of the piece, it's noted that Cunningham has joined No Labels and serves as the group's national director.[37] No Labels ended their campaign in April 2024 due to a lack of suitable candidates. He opted to endorse Democratic PresidentJoe Biden.[38]
Cunningham supports theAffordable Care Act (Obamacare).[39][40] Cunningham accepts thescientific consensus on climate change.[41] He also opposesoffshore drilling, which garnered him the endorsement of coastal mayors and is attributed for his upset victory, and sponsored bills to ban offshore drilling while serving in Congress.[42][43] He does not supportdefunding the police.[41]
He would have supported legalizing marijuana and sports betting if he had been elected governor of South Carolina.[44] His gubernatorial campaign also promised to eliminate South Carolina'sstate income tax.[45]
Cunningham lives inCharleston, South Carolina, with his two sons.[46][47] His father,Bill Cunningham, is a formerKentucky Supreme Court Justice and author of historical fiction.[3]
In 2021, Cunningham announced his separation from his wife Amanda.[48]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Cunningham | 23,443 | 71.5 | |
| Democratic | Toby Smith | 9,342 | 28.5 | |
| Total votes | 32,785 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Cunningham | 145,455 | 50.6 | |||
| Republican | Katie Arrington | 141,473 | 49.2 | |||
| Write-in | 505 | 0.2 | ||||
| Total votes | 287,433 | 100.0 | ||||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Nancy Mace | 216,042 | 50.6 | |||
| Democratic | Joe Cunningham (incumbent) | 210,627 | 49.3 | |||
| Write-in | 442 | 0.1 | ||||
| Total votes | 427,111 | 100.0 | ||||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Cunningham | 102,315 | 56.5 | |
| Democratic | Mia McLeod | 56,084 | 31.0 | |
| Democratic | Carlton Boyd | 9,526 | 5.3 | |
| Democratic | William Williams | 6,746 | 3.7 | |
| Democratic | Calvin McMillan | 6,260 | 3.5 | |
| Total votes | 180,931 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Henry McMaster (incumbent) | 988,501 | 58.04 | |
| Democratic | Joe Cunningham | 692,691 | 40.67 | |
| Libertarian | Bruce Reeves | 20,826 | 1.22 | |
| Total votes | 1,703,192 | 100.0 | ||
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromSouth Carolina's 1st congressional district 2019–2021 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forGovernor of South Carolina 2022 | Most recent |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
