South Carolina Republican Mark Sanford, a former governor and congressman — and briefly a long-shot presidential contender — is seeking another comeback, joining the crowded field running for the open Charleston-area seat he held for five full terms.
Sanford filed his candidacy for the 1st District hours before Monday’s deadline. News of his decision to run was first reported by The Post and Courier and The State.
From 1995 through 2001, and then again from 2013 through 2019, Sanford served in Congress. He led the Palmetto State as governor from 2003 to 2011, gaining national notoriety in 2009 after revelations that he fled to Argentina to meet a woman with whom he had been having an affair. Sanford’s office initially said he was hiking the Appalachian Trail.
