Hugh Thompson Rice Jr. (born August 4, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the
U.S. representative
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
for from 2013 to 2023. The district serves most of the northeastern corner of the state and includes
Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the East Coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as the " Grand Strand” in the northeastern part of the state. It ...
, the
Grand Strand,
Florence
Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025.
Florence ...
,
Cheraw
The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura,Sebeok, Thomas Albert''Native Languages of the Americas, Volume 2.''Plenum Press, 1977: 251. were a Siouan-speaking tribe of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands,Swanton''The Indians ...
, and
Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...
. A
Republican, Rice was first elected in 2012 and was a member of the freshman class chosen to sit at the House Republican leadership table. Rice was reelected in 2014, defeating Democratic nominee
Gloria Bromell Tinubu in a rematch of the 2012 election.
Rice was one of ten Republicans to vote to impeach
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
in the
second impeachment of Donald Trump
Donald Trump, serving as the 45th president of the United States, was impeached for the second time on January 13, 2021, one week before his term expired. On that date, the House of Representatives adopted one article of impeachment again ...
.
In January 2021, the
South Carolina Republican Party censured him for voting for the impeachment. In 2022, Trump endorsed a primary opponent for his seat.
Rice lost the Republican nomination in the June 14 primary to
South Carolina state representative Russell Fry, garnering less than 25% of the vote.
He is also the only member of Congress who voted against certifying the results of the
2020 presidential election and in favor of Trump’s impeachment.
Early life and education
Rice was born in
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...
, on August 4, 1957. He was four years old when his parents divorced, and his mother, a teacher, took him and his brother Clay to
Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the East Coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as the " Grand Strand” in the northeastern part of the state. It ...
. Rice's first job was a busboy when he was 12, and he was variously a night shift fry cook, a grocery store bag boy, and
miniature golf
Miniature golf (also known as minigolf, putt-putt, crazy golf, and by #Nomenclature, several other names) is an offshoot of the sport of golf focusing solely on the putting aspect of its parent game. The aim of the game is to score the lowest ...
course manager while still in high school. Rice was 16 when his father died.
Rice was offered a scholarship to
Duke University
Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...
but enrolled at the
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...
, where he earned a bachelor's degree (B.S.) and in 1979, a master's degree in accounting. In 1982, he earned a
J.D. degree from the
University of South Carolina School of Law.
Early career
After college, Rice worked at the accounting/consulting firm of
Deloitte & Touche
Deloitte is a Multinational corporation, multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the largest professional services network in the world by revenue and number of employees, and is one of the Big Four a ...
in
Charlotte, where he earned his
CPA certificate. In 1985 he returned to Myrtle Beach to practice tax law with the law firm Van Osdell, then established his own practice, Rice & MacDonald, in 1997. He was elected chair of the
Horry County Council in 2010, serving until he resigned from the position on December 31, 2012, in order to take his seat in Congress.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2012
Rice was elected to the
U.S. House
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
in 2012 as the first representative for the newly created 7th district. He defeated Jay Jordan, Randal Wallace, Dick Withington, James Mader, Chad Prosser, Katherine Jenerette, and Renee Culler in the June 12
Republican primary to advance to a runoff. In the June 26 runoff he defeated
Andre Bauer. Rice defeated
Gloria Bromell Tinubu in the November 6 general election.
2014
Rice was reelected in 2014, defeating Bromell Tinubu again, with 60.15% of the vote to her 39.85%.
2022
On June 14, 2022, Rice lost the Republican nomination to
Russell Fry by a landslide.
Tenure
In December 2012, the House appointed Rice to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, the
Committee on the Budget and the
Committee on Small Business of the
113th Congress.
On January 8, 2013, Congressman
Sam Graves
Samuel Bruce Graves Jr. (born November 7, 1963) is an American politician best known for serving in the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives for , with him being the dean of Missouri's congressional districts, Mi ...
appointed Rice chairman of the Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax and Capital Access.
On January 22, 2013, Rice was appointed to the following subcommittees:
Highways and Transit,
Water Resources and Environment, and
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. He said the appointments would allow him to work for the funding and construction of
Interstate 73
Interstate 73 (I-73) is a north–south Interstate Highway, currently located entirely within the US state of North Carolina. It travels , from northwest of Rockingham, North Carolina to northeast of Stokesdale, North Carolina, Stokesdale, ...
as well as the dredging of the Georgetown Port.
On November 11, 2013, Rice was appointed to the water resources conference committee, which helped resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2013. The version that passed the House would allow for the dredging of the Georgetown port, a $33 million project that would boost the local economy; Rice said, "I have made it my goal to do whatever it takes to champion South Carolina's ports."
Rice has co-sponsored several pieces of legislation including Safe Schools Act of 2013, a bill to repeal the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health ...
and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and others.
Rice has pushed changes to port funding and offered victims help to replace Social Security cards and other federal documents after a massive fire destroyed 26 condo buildings in the
Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the East Coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as the " Grand Strand” in the northeastern part of the state. It ...
area.
On December 18, 2019, Rice joined all House Republicans in voting against
impeaching Trump on both articles.
In December 2020, Rice was one of 126 Republican members of the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
to sign an
amicus brief
An amicus curiae (; ) is an individual or organization that is not a party to a legal case, but that is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. Whether an ''amic ...
in support of ''
Texas v. Pennsylvania'', a lawsuit filed at the
United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
contesting the results of the
2020 presidential election, in which
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 ...
defeated incumbent
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
. Rice later said he had been mistaken in questioning the election.
On January 13, 2021, Rice was one of ten Republicans who voted to impeach Trump
a second time. As late as two days before the impeachment debate, he opposed impeaching Trump. But Rice told ''
The Post and Courier
''The Post and Courier'' is the main daily newspaper in Charleston, South Carolina. It traces its ancestry to three newspapers, the ''Charleston Courier'', founded in 1803, the ''Charleston Daily News'', founded 1865, and ''The Evening Post'', f ...
'' that Trump's response to the
storming of the Capitol changed his mind. He criticized Trump for neither offering condolences to those who were injured nor expressing regret about the two police officers who died. In a press release, Rice also upbraided Trump for his lack of contrition. Ultimately, Rice said, Trump's "utter failure" in the matter forced him to vote for impeachment. He did so later that day, alongside nine other Republicans.
On January 30, 2021, the South Carolina Republican Party voted to formally censure Rice for his impeachment vote.
On May 19, 2021, Rice was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the
January 6 commission meant to investigate the
storming of the U.S. Capitol.
On February 1, 2022, Trump endorsed state representative
Russell Fry in the Republican congressional primary in retaliation for Rice's vote for impeachment. Trump said, "Congressman Tom Rice of South Carolina, the coward who abandoned his constituents by caving to Nancy Pelosi and the Radical Left, and who actually voted against me on Impeachment Hoax #2, must be thrown out of office." In March, after a Trump rally in South Carolina where Fry had spoken, Rice responded, calling Trump "a would-be tyrant, because, like no one else I've ever met, he is consumed by spite."
"I took one vote he didn't like and now he's chosen to support a yes man candidate who has and will bow to anything he says."
"If you want a Congressman who supports political violence in Ukraine or in the United States Capitol...who supports a would-be tyrant over the Constitution...then Russell Fry is your candidate.”
On June 5, 2022, Rice was interviewed on ABC and asserted that he had "no regrets" about his action. When the interviewer told him that, in his obituary, "the first sentence is going to be 'Tom Rice, who was a Republican member of Congress, voted to impeach Donald Trump'", Rice's reply was, "So be it," he said. "I'll wear it like a badge. So be it."
Rice was interviewed by NBC News on June 13, 2022, and when asked about Trump's actions, he said, "He threw a temper tantrum that culminated with the sacking of the United States Capitol" and "It's a direct attack on the Constitution, and he should be held accountable".
Political positions
Foreign policy and defense
In June 2021, Rice was one of 49 House Republicans to vote to repeal the
, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.
Committee assignments
*
Committee on Ways and Means
**
Subcommittee on Trade
**
Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures
Caucus memberships
*
Republican Study Committee
*
United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus
*
Republican Governance Group
*
Problem Solvers Caucus
Electoral history
Personal life
Rice and his family live in Myrtle Beach. He married his wife Wrenzie in 1982 and they have three sons. He is an
Episcopalian
Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...
.
In late May 2020, Rice announced that he refused to wear a
face mask in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...
while in Congress; in mid-June, he announced that he, his wife, and his son, had all been infected with
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
.
References
External links
Congressman Tom Riceofficial U.S. House website
Tom Rice for Congress*
*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rice, Tom
1957 births
21st-century South Carolina politicians
American Episcopalians
Episcopalians from South Carolina
Lawyers from Charleston, South Carolina
Living people
Politicians from Charleston, South Carolina
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from South Carolina
University of South Carolina School of Law alumni
21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives