Former Columbia mayor to begin role in the White House

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Former mayor of Columbia Stephen Benjamin is heading to the White House.

President Biden announced Monday, Stephen Benjamin is joining his staff as the Director of the Office of Public Engagement and an advisor.

Benjamin will be replacing former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms who will be leaving the role at the end of March.

In this role, Benjamin will oversee the White House Office of Public Engagement. It works at the local, state, and national levels to ensure community leaders, diverse perspectives, and new voices have the opportunity to inform the work of the President in an inclusive, transparent, and responsible way.

“Mayor Benjamin is a longtime public servant, who has served the people of South Carolina for over two decades statewide and as a three-term mayor of Columbia. As a former President of both the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the African American Mayors Association, Steve’s deep relationships with communities across the country will serve our Administration and the American public well,” said Biden in a statement.

Benjamin began his public service career in Columbia as student body president of the University of South Carolina and later as Student Bar Association President at the USC School of Law.

Benjamin served the city of Columbia as a mayor in 2010. In February 2021, Benjamin finished his term and decided to not seek re-election to focus on spending time with his daughter and growing his law practice, The Benjamin Firm, LLC.

Prior to his service as mayor, Benjamin served in South Carolina Governor Jim Hodges’ cabinet as the Chief Executive of the state’s second-largest law enforcement agency, the Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services.

Benjamin’s wife, Judge DeAndrea Benjamin, was recently confirmed to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.

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