Sandy Run, SC (Paul Kirby) - Brian Lee Merrill, an independent write-in candidate, has announced that he is running for South Carolina House of Representatives District 93. The residents of district 93 are currently represented by Russell L. Ott, a Democrat.
House District 93 covers a large portion of Orangeburg and Calhoun Counties. It also extends into Lexington County in Sandy Run, and includes a portion of the Swansea and Gaston areas and the Dixiana community. There is also a portion of Richland County included in this sprawling district.
Merrill is a native of South Carolina who was born in Charleston, SC. He grew up in the town of Summerville, SC,and graduated Fort Dorchester High School in North Charleston. He was a machinist by trade but says he is now a hobby farmer who likes to, “Tinker around in the country.”
He calls himself a proud blue-collar worker who ran a CNC machine for many years. He worked for Bellwright Industries until 1996 when he then went to work for JW Aluminum in Goose Creek. He stayed there for 24 years in both production and leadership roles. Merrill worked at JW Aluminum until leaving in 2019.
In 1999, he married his wife Ellen and they just celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary. They lived in the low country of South Carolina for many years but relocated to Calhoun County near Staley Crossroads in 2017.
In 2006, he ran for US House of Representatives in South Carolina District One as an Independent write-in candidate. His platform was constitutional restoration. He calls himself a simple guy who loves liberty and all the promises that our country offers as laid out by its founding fathers. He says he lives modestly and doesn't live in a mansion on the hill removed from the reality of the common person. “I don't come from old money or privilege, I have worked in the trenches to make my way in the world and I wouldn't have it any other way,” Merrill stated in his biography.
Merrill is a firm believer in personal liberty as guaranteed by the constitution of the United States. He says he believes that the citizens of this country should take personal responsibility for themselves, their communities, and those who cannot help themselves. He says all these things can be handled by the citizens but through their own personal choice and not by coercion from the government. He also believes that local government can take care of its own problems and issues much better than some distant “Big Brother” government.
According to Merrill, we as a nation should work toward restoring the intent and the spirit of the 9th and 10th Amendments to the US Constitution. The 9th Amendment exist to ensure that the Bill of Rights did not limit people to just the specific rights it addressed. The 10th amendment directs that any power not specifically provided to the federal government by the Constitution should be either returned to the states or the people.
If elected, Merrill says that he will limit himself to three terms. He promises to be transparent and says there will be no “smokey back room” where deals can be made secret from the public.He also promises that he will not introduce or vote in favor of any legislation that limits the personal freedoms of the citizens. If the people of SC House District 93 choose him as their representative, he says will never sell his soul to any special interest groups and will always be present and on the job, just like a regular citizen would if they worked in the private sector.
To vote for Bryan Lee Merrill you would write his name in on your ballot during the November 3rd general election. To find out more about Brian Lee Merrill go to his website at www.votemerrill.net. You can also reach him by email at votemerrill@gmail.com.
