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| South Carolina House Representative Chris Murphy, R-Dorchester, is retiring. Murphy was first elected to House District 98 in 2010. |
Written by Tony J. Spain, Palmetto Examiner
August 22, 2025
South Carolina State Representative Chris Murphy, R-Dorchester, who was a frequent no show at the state house missing approximately 48% of votes the last legislative session, according to an analysis of state house records, has resigned.
Murphy, 56, who has represented House District 98 since 2010, is serving his eighth term and was once the chairman of the S.C. House judiciary committee with a promising future has struggled with attendance issues for years due to alleged substance abuse issues.
In 2022 Murphy was absent from key House judiciary committee meetings he was supposed to chair due to an undisclosed illness before entering a North Carolina rehabilitation treatment facility for alcohol abuse that sidelined him for much of the session that year.
“It has come to my attention that questions about my health have arisen publicly,” Murphy said in a September 2022 statement to The State newspaper reporter Joseph Bustos. “While this issue is deeply personal, I would like to share that after struggling with alcohol abuse, I have sought treatment and am currently taking steps to ensure I am healthy moving forward.”
Concerns of Murphy’s struggles with alcohol have resurfaced in 2025 as the House member missed almost half of all votes last session and S.C. House Speaker Murrell Smith granted him excused absences for the final two-and-a-half months of the 2025 legislative session.
“While this decision is bittersweet, my retirement will allow me to spend more time with my loved ones and focus on my work outside of public office,” Murphy wrote in his resignation letter.
It is not known who will run to fill the seat that represents portions of North Charleston and Dorchester County. Murphy will finish out his current term that ends Jan 5, 2026, but the special election process to replace him will begin quickly because of a “irrevocable” declaration in his resignation letter triggers a special election per S.C. Code of Laws s8-1-145.
Filing for the special election will begin Sept 5, 2025, and close Sept. 13, 2025. The primary election is scheduled to take place Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, with runoffs scheduled for two weeks later on Nov. 18, if needed.
The special election will take place Jan. 6, 2026.
The district is considered safe Republican territory with Murphy comfortably winning his past two elections by 14 points or more.
About the Author: Tony Spain is a former candidate for
Richland County Council 2020 and an award winning former military photographer
and journalist while in the Public Affairs Office for the U.S. Army. His photos
and writing have been published in numerous publications such as The Commercial
News, Danville, Ill.; The Paraglide, Fort Bragg, N.C.; Soldier of Fortune
Magazine; The State Newspaper, Columbia, S.C., and more.
He lives in
Columbia, S.C.
