Newcomers vie for Senate District 13 seat
Democrat Jimmy Tobias will face off against Republican Shane Martin for the District 13 state Senate seat representing parts of Greenville, Spartanburg and Union counties on Nov. 4.
Martin, a Glenn Springs resident who defeated Sen. Jim Ritchie in the Republican primary, is married with two children. The 36-year-old is a mechanical engineer who owns Martin Automotive Consulting Inc.
He says he is running because he thinks he can do a better job than Ritchie, whom he characterized as inaccessible to constituents.
“I’ve been on the school board for almost four years (Spartanburg District 6), and I’ve seen what goes on in our Statehouse,” he said. “Too many times the interests of other parties are represented before the interest of our district.”
At the top of Martin’s list is mandating roll-call voting in the Legislature and eliminating the voice vote so constituents know where their legislators stand on the issues. He also said he wants to toughen drunken driving laws and cut wasteful spending.
Tobias, of Spartanburg, also says Ritchie was unresponsive to citizens.
Married with six adopted children, Tobias, 53, is retired as chief pilot for the South Carolina Forestry Commission and now runs two small businesses — a real estate investment firm and a pawn shop.
As a former foster parent, Tobias says he has first-hand experience with the system and he wants to give children more rights in Family Court.
“We need to be looking out for these children and get them into homes with parents who want to adopt them so we can solve some of the social problems they’ll have later,” he said.
Tobias said he is opposed to privatizing schools and said he isn’t accepting political donations because he finds the practice distasteful.
Instead, he said he hopes to convince residents to vote for him at events being held around the district.
By Liv Osby
The Greenville News
October 9, 2008