Russell William Fry (born January 31, 1985) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

politician and lawyer serving as the U.S. representative for

South Carolina's 7th congressional district South Carolina's 7th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in South Carolina, established in 2011 following apportionment of another seat to the state in the 2010 United States redistr ...

since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Fry represented the 106th District in the

South Carolina House of Representatives The South Carolina House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Carolina General Assembly. It consists of 124 representatives elected to two-year terms at the same time as U.S. congressional elections. Unlike many legislatures, seatin ...

from 2015 to 2023. In 2018, he was appointed to the position of Majority Chief Whip for the 122nd South Carolina General Assembly.

Career

South Carolina House of Representatives

In May 2015, State Representative

Nelson Hardwick Nelson L. Hardwick (born September 19, 1951) is an American politician. From 2005 through 2015, he served as a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives The South Carolina House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Car ...

announced his resignation after House leadership investigated sexual harassment allegations against him. Fry ran in the special election for Hardwick's seat. He won a plurality of the vote in the Republican primary in July and advanced to a runoff against Tyler Servant. Fry won the runoff, and was unopposed in the general election.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2022

In the aftermath of the

2021 United States Capitol attack On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of Donald Trump, President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources: * * * * * * * * * * * * * two months afte ...

Tom Rice Hugh Thompson Rice Jr. (born August 4, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2023. The district serves most of the northeastern corner of the state and includes Myrtle Beach, the Gra ...

, who was serving as the U.S. representative for

, unexpectedly voted in favor of impeaching President Donald Trump. Fry criticized Rice for his vote, and said he was considering running against him in 2022. In August 2021, Fry announced that he would challenge Rice in the 2022 election, emphasizing his opposition to Trump's impeachment. On February 1, 2022, Trump endorsed Fry. In the June 14 Republican primary, Fry defeated Rice by 26.6 percentage points. On November 8, Fry was elected to Congress with 64.9% of the vote, defeating Democratic nominee Daryl Scott.

Tenure

Fry was elected to serve as the president of the congressional freshman class during orientation week. On January 16, 2023, it was announced that Fry would serve on the

House Judiciary Committee The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, f ...

Caucus memberships

* Congressional Western Caucus

Political positions

Syria

In 2023, Fry was among 47 Republicans to vote in favor of H.Con.Res. 21, which directed President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

to remove U.S. troops from

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

within 180 days.

Somalia

In 2023, Fry was among 52 Republicans who voted in favor H.Con.Res. 30, which would remove American troops from Somalia.

Antisemitism

Fry was among the 187 Republicans who voted in favor of H.R. 6090: The

Antisemitism Awareness Act Following the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel and the outbreak of the Gaza war, the United States has provided extensive military, diplomatic, and financial support to Israel throughout the Gaza war. This included rapid deployment of wars ...

. The act would require the use of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism "when reviewing or investigating complaints of discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance." The

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...

, along with other organizations, warned against the adoption of this definition as it could limit free speech surrounding

criticism of Israel Criticism of Israel is a subject of journalistic and scholarly commentary and research within the scope of international relations theory, expressed in terms of political science. Israel has faced international criticism since its establishment ...

on college campuses.

Israel

Fry voted to provide Israel with support following the

2023 Hamas attack on Israel On October 7, 2023, Hamas and several other Palestinian militant groups launched coordinated armed incursions from the Gaza Strip into the Gaza envelope of southern Israel, the first invasion of Israeli territory since the 1948 Arab–Israeli ...

Electoral history

Personal life

Fry is a

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

. He is married and has one son.

References

External links

Congressman Russell Fry
official U.S. House website
Russell Fry for Congress
campaign website * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Fry, Russell 1985 births Living people 21st-century South Carolina politicians Baptists from South Carolina People from Horry County, South Carolina Republican Party members of the South Carolina House of Representatives Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina University of South Carolina alumni 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives 21st-century members of the South Carolina General Assembly