Matt W. Leber is an American politician and
Republican member of the
South Carolina House of Representatives, representing District 116. He is the Republican nominee for South Carolina State Senate District 41.
Early life and career
Prior to being elected to office, Leber, a combat veteran, served eight years as a paratrooper in the United States Army.
Positions
Leber supports the Second Amendment and has an A rating from the NRA. In 2024, he voted for
Constitutional Carry, also known as permitless carry, speaking out against Senate amendments applying increased penalties on non permit holders, calling them unconstitutional and stating, "we cannot have a different class of citizens in America."
Leber sponsored a bill criminalizing the trafficking of fentanyl and was instrumental in pushing it through the House Judiciary Committee. Leber has repeatedly called for increased security along the US Mexico border to combat drug trafficking and has proposed measures to dissuade
illegal aliens
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...
from coming to
South Carolina. During Leber's 2022 House race, State Representative
Wendell Gilliard
Wendell G. Gilliard (born July 1, 1954) is an American politician, steelworker, and union official. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Gilliard serves as a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, representing the 111th ...
accused Leber of having participated in armed patrols on the US Mexico border and having "direct ties to the
Three Percenters".
Matt Leber describes himself as pro-life and voted for the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act.
Leber supports
term limits
A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...
.
Political career
In the 2022 general
election for
South Carolina House of Representatives District 116, Leber defeated Democratic incumbent
Chardale Murray. Representative Leber serves as Chairman of the Freshman Caucus, on the House Judiciary Committee, and on the newly formed standing House Committee on Artificial Intelligence (AI).
In April 2023, Leber was the first South Carolina lawmaker to endorse
Vivek Ramaswamy in the 2024 presidential election. Leber served as Ramaswamy's State Chair for South Carolina. After Ramaswamy suspended his presidential campaign, Leber joined Ramaswamy in endorsing former President
Donald Trump in the 2024 Republican Presidential Primary.
In September, 2023, Leber announced his
candidacy for South Carolina State Senate District 41. In June, 2024, he defeated incumbent Senator
Sandy Senn
Sandy Senn (born June 27, 1963) is an American politician. She is a member of the South Carolina Senate from the 41st District, serving since 2016. She is a member of the Republican Party.
Positions Traffic
Senn assured voters, "I will work t ...
in the Republican Primary.
Leber will face Democrat Rita Adkins in the general election.
References
External links
Matt Leber 2024 Senate Campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leber, Matt
Members of the South Carolina General Assembly
Republican Party members of the South Carolina House of Representatives
Living people
21st-century American legislators
1973 births