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Alvin Greene

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Alvin Greene
Personal details
Born
Alvin Michael Greene

(1977-08-30) August 30, 1977 (age 47)
Florence, South Carolina, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of South Carolina, Columbia (BA)
WebsiteCampaign website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Air Force
 United States Army
Years of service1996–2009
UnitArmy National Guard
AwardsGlobal War on Terrorism Service Medal
Air Force Good Conduct Medal
Korea Defense Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal

Alvin Michael Greene (born August 30, 1977) is an American political candidate from the state of South Carolina. He was the Democratic Party's nominee in the 2010 United States Senate election in South Carolina, and was defeated by incumbent Republican Sen. Jim DeMint, 61.48% to 27.65%. Greene is the first African-American to be nominated for U.S. Senate by a major party in South Carolina.

Greene is notable for the suspicions among members of his own party regarding the legitimacy of his 2010 primary victory, for his "strange, well-documented behavior on the campaign trail," for the intense media attention he received, and for pursuing his 2010 Senate bid despite having been indicted. He also ran for the state legislature in a February 2011 special election, receiving 37 votes.

Early life and military service

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Greene was born in Florence, South Carolina. His father, James Greene Sr., is a retired teacher from the Clemson Extension program, a barber, and a nightclub owner "who wanted blacks to play a bigger role in politics and entertainment."[1]

Greene received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of South Carolina in 2000.[1]

Greene served as a unit supply specialist in the U.S. Army from February 2007 to August 2009.[2][3] He also previously served in the South Carolina Air National Guard from 1995 to 2002, on active duty with the U.S. Air Force as an intelligence specialist from July 2002 to September 2005 and with the Army National Guard for seven months prior to joining the Army.[4][5]

During Greene's time in the Air Force, he received numerous poor evaluations from his superiors. The evaluations stated that Greene was an ineffective leader who was disorganized, made costly errors, and could not clearly express his thoughts.[4] Greene received an honorable but involuntary discharge from the Army in 2009 after a 13-year career.[2]

For his military service, Greene received the Air Force Good Conduct Medal, the Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Korea Defense Service Medal, the Non-Commissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, the Army Service Ribbon and the Air Force Training Ribbon.[6]

Political campaigns

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U.S. Senate campaign, 2010

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See also: 2010 United States Senate election in South Carolina

Democratic primary

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Greene said that he originally got the idea to run for office in 2008 when he was stationed in Korea.[7] On June 8, 2010, he won the South Carolina Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, receiving 100,362 (59%) votes out of 170,215 votes cast; 69,853 (41%) went to Vic Rawl.[8] Greene's victory over Rawl, a Charleston County councilmember and former state legislator,[9] was described as an upset.[10][11] At the time of his Senate campaign, Greene was unemployed and living with and caring for his father[12] in Manning, South Carolina.[13] Greene won the primary despite very limited campaigning and campaign spending and despite having no website and no yard signs.[14] Voter turnout in most counties was in the range of 20–30%.[8]

Questions about candidacy

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After Greene was declared the winner and Rawl congratulated him on his win, Democratic officials began to voice opposition and to raise questions about Greene and his campaign.[9] He did not attend the state Democratic party convention, did not file legally required forms with the Secretary of the Senate or Federal Election Commission, and attempted to pay his $10,440 filing fee with a personal check, rather than a check from a campaign account.[12]

Though his primary victory baffled many,[7] some explanations have been offered. South Carolina State Senator Robert Ford claimed that the surname "Greene" is common among African-Americans, and suggested that fact may have caused African-American voters to identify with him.[15] Some, including House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, speculated that Greene was a Republican plant and called for an investigation into the primary.[16][17] Officials noted that similar tactics had been used in the past,[18] including in a 1990 primary in South Carolina.[19][20] Greene denied the assertion that he was a Republican plant.[21][7] Vic Rawl's campaign issued a press release that election forensics analyst Dr. Walter Mebane had "performed second-digit Benford's law tests on the precinct returns from the Senate race" and found improbable vote patterns. Dr. Michael Miller reportedly found a significant difference in the vote percentages in absentee voters and Election Day voters, indicating a corrupted count.[22]

Some commentators raised questions about the source of Greene's funding for the $10,440 filing fee. Federal and state law requires a candidate to pay a filing fee out of his own pocket. Greene claimed that he paid the filing fee by saving two years of his service pay.[23] However, Greene qualified to be represented by a public defender in his obscenity case.[24] Former state Democratic Party chairman Dick Harpootlian told NPR that this revelation raised doubts about whether Greene could have afforded the filing fee.[25]

In response to an official protest filed by Rawl, the executive committee of the South Carolina Democratic Party conducted a formal hearing on June 17, 2010, to assess the legitimacy of the primary election results.[26][27] Greene neither attended nor sent a representative to the hearing.[26] The executive committee of the South Carolina Democratic Party voted 55 to 10 to reject Rawl's request for a new Senate primary,[28][29] finding insufficient evidence of impropriety to disturb the primary election result.[28][29][30][31]

On June 27, 2010, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the 5th Circuit Solicitor's office announced that they were investigating Greene's finances. On the same day, it emerged that Greene's public defender had been replaced by a private attorney.[32] On July 9, 2010, Greene was cleared of wrongdoing after a state criminal probe determined Greene had indeed paid the filing fee from his own personal funds.[33]

At multiple points during the campaign, the South Carolina Democratic Party called for Greene to withdraw his candidacy. In August 2010, South Carolina Democratic Party chairwoman Carol Fowler asserted that the criminal charges against Greene would make it impossible for him to run a statewide campaign.[34]

Media coverage

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Greene has been called an enigmatic figure in American politics.[35][36] He is known for his "strange, well-documented behavior on the campaign trail".[37] In a June 2010 interview, CNN's Don Lemon asked Greene about his mental state and cognitive ability.[38]

Much attention was devoted to Greene's manner of speaking due to his habits of frequently interrupting himself, halting in mid-sentence, and saying "OK" between statements.[1] At times, his jokes were not well understood by the media, such as when he told British newspaper The Guardian that one way to create jobs was to employ people to make toys in his likeness.[39][40] A study by the Pew Research Center released in late July 2010 found that Greene's campaign had received the most media attention of all of the 2010 political campaigns.[41]

In late July 2010, a hip hop-based viral video entitled "Alvin Greene is on the scene" became a hit on YouTube and other internet sites, garnering thousands of views an hour.[42] It promoted Greene's candidacy and intermixed media clips of him with clips of LeBron James. AutoTune was used to manipulate some of the lyrics.[43][44] Greene has since denied that he played any role in the production of the video.[45]

In August 2010, a reporter visited Greene's home and asked about his recent indictment. In response, Greene "ordered the reporter to 'leave [his] property' and 'go away'". When the reporter "'stopped briefly to talk with Greene's brother Jimmy, Alvin Greene began howling and wailing the words, "no" and "go"'".[34]

General election

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Greene was the first African-American to be nominated for the U.S. Senate by a major party in South Carolina.[46][47]

The day after the primary election, the media reported that Greene was facing felony obscenity charges stemming from a November 2009 arrest for allegedly showing a pornographic picture on an Internet site to an 18-year-old female University of South Carolina student in a computer lab and allegedly saying, "Let's go to your room".[48][49][50] Greene refused to bow out of the race, asserting that "the Democratic Party has chosen their nominee, and we have to stand behind their choice. The people have spoken. We need to be pro-South Carolina, not anti-Greene".[51]

Greene hired South Carolina attorney Suzanne Coe as his campaign manager. Coe said she offered to assist Greene after being struck by his honesty and selfless motivation.[52]

The progressive watchdog organization Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington named Greene to their list of the 11 most crooked candidates vying for federal office in 2010. Greene took exception to this designation, saying that "I think my opponent should be on this list. He's not doing his job and he doesn't care about South Carolina or the United States of America."[53]

In the general election, Greene faced DeMint, Green Party candidate Tom Clements, and write-in candidates Nathalie Dupree[54] and Mazie Ferguson.[55] On November 2, 2010, Greene lost to DeMint by a margin of 61.48% to 27.65%, with Clements receiving 9.21% of the vote.[56]

South Carolina House of Representatives campaign, 2011

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On December 24, 2010, Greene filed as a candidate in the Democratic primary special election for the South Carolina House of Representatives seat left vacant by the death of Representative Cathy Harvin.[57] The primary was held on February 15, 2011; Greene received 37 votes.[58]

Potential presidential campaign, 2012

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After he lost the 2010 Senate election, Greene reportedly asked the South Carolina Democratic Party how much the filing fee would be to run for President of the United States.[59] The next day, he confirmed to the Columbia Free Times that he was "seriously considering" a presidential campaign, although he was not sure which party's nomination he would seek.[60]

Political positions

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Economy

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During his 2010 Senate campaign, Greene's campaign slogan was: "Let's get South Carolina back to work."[1] Greene favored measures to lower the price of gas and supported offshore drilling.[7]

Government reform

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Greene cited the example of mismanagement at the Pentagon as proof that greater accountability in government is needed. He criticized corporate influence on politics, saying that "Half the members of the US Senate work for BP. The other half work for Halliburton."[61]

Health care

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In an editorial published in The Guardian as "The Alvin Greene manifesto for a fairer America", Greene explained his political views in more detail and attacked the political establishment. Greene advocated free universal health care, saying that the United States should model its system on Austria, Britain, or Canada.[62]

Judicial reform

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Greene supported the idea that the severity of penalty for a misdeed or wrongdoing should be reasonable and proportionate to the severity of the infraction. "Fairness saves us money," he said in an interview. "There are innocent people incarcerated. We spend more than two times of our taxpayer dollars on inmates than on students."[63]

Criminal proceedings

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2010 obscenity charges

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In June 2010, the media reported that Greene was facing felony obscenity charges stemming from an incident that had occurred the previous fall at the University of South Carolina.[48][49][50]

The incident occurred in a basement computer lab on the University of South Carolina campus.[64] According to student Camille McCoy, a man (later identified as Greene) told her to look at his computer screen; pornographic images were displayed on it. McCoy told him that this was "offensive and not funny". Greene then allegedly asked if he could come to her room.[64] McCoy has stated that the situation "was kind of scary. He's a pretty big boy. He could've overpowered me."[65] McCoy then went to her room and told her resident mentor what had happened.[66] Greene was later arrested.[67] Greene has asserted that he was joking when he spoke to McCoy, and that he believed she owed him an apology for pressing charges.[68] In an affidavit, police said that they had surveillance video showing the interaction.[69]

On August 12, 2010, a Richland County grand jury indicted Greene for disseminating, procuring or promoting obscenity (a felony) as well as a misdemeanor charge of communicating obscene materials to a person without consent.[70] On June 6, 2011, Greene accepted the Richland County prosecutor's offer to enter a pretrial diversion program which would expunge his record of both charges after he completed a year-long[71] course of counseling and community service.[72]

2013 arrest

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On August 9, 2013, Greene was arrested on a trespassing charge at an apartment complex in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. A report says Greene was walking around at night, was disoriented, and asked for paramedics. The paramedics checked on Greene, who was then taken into custody.[73]

2018 midterm elections

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Greene noted in a 2018 interview that he was supportive of President Donald Trump.[74]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Hutchins, Corey (June 15, 2010). "The Manning-churian Candidate?". freetimes. Archived from the original on June 23, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2019..
  2. ^ a b Dwyer, Devin; Osunsami, Steve. "Sen. Nominee Was Kicked Out of Army, Has Felony Charge Pending". ABC News. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  3. ^ Wing, Nick (July 24, 2010). "Alvin Greene Responds To Release Of Military Records: 'Ridiculous...They Only Promote The Terrorists And The Communists'". Huff Post. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Alvin Greene's Military Records Cite Mistakes". Cbsnews.com. July 22, 2010. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  5. ^ Scherer, Michael (June 21, 2010). "Questions Persist About Alvin Greene's Mysterious Military Discharges". Time. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  6. ^ Roig-Franzia, Manuel. "In South Carolina, Greene is mystery man despite winning Democratic Senate nod". The Washington Post.
  7. ^ a b c d Khimm, Suzy (June 9, 2010). "Who Is Alvin Greene?". Mother Jones. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  8. ^ a b South Carolina State Election Commission. Official election results. Note: scroll down or page through the list to find the results for the Democratic Senate primary. US Senate Results (Dem). June 14, 2010.
  9. ^ a b Kinnard, Meg; Press, Associated (June 15, 2010). "Senate candidate Vic Rawl asks for primary redo". SFGate.
  10. ^ Catanese, David (June 13, 2010). "Rawl may protest unlikely loss to Greene". POLITICO.
  11. ^ "Greene's Primary Opponent Calls for Investigation of Election Results". Fox News. March 26, 2015.
  12. ^ a b Wolfe, Wes. http://www.wolfereports.com/tag/alvin-greene/ Strange happenings in the Dem senatorial primary. Archived June 10, 2010, at archive.today Wolfe Reports. May 21, 2010.
  13. ^ Hutchins, Corey. A Phantom Candidate for U.S. Senate? Free Times. Issue #23.20 :: May 19, 2010 – May 25, 2010
  14. ^ Political Wire: Unknown Candidate wins Senate Nomination Archived June 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 8, 2010.
  15. ^ Robert Behre and David Slade, Update: Clyburn calls for probe in Senate race The Post and Courier, June 10, 2010.
  16. ^ South Carolina Votes First, Asks Questions (Who’s Alvin Greene?) Later The New York Times, Mark Leibovich. June 11, 2010
  17. ^ Rudin, Ken (June 10, 2010). "Democrats Are Hinting Foul Play In South Carolina Senate Primary" – via NPR.
  18. ^ Cook, John. Mystery S.C. nominee has pending felony charge Archived June 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo! News, June 9, 2010.
  19. ^ Franke-Ruta, Garance. Intrigue surrounding S.C.'s Democratic primary deepens, The Washington Post, June 11, 2010. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
  20. ^ Hunter, Kathleen. Clyburn Calls for Probe Into South Carolina Primary Candidates. Archived June 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Congressional Quarterly. June 10, 2010.
  21. ^ Duboff, Josh (June 11, 2010). "Keith Olbermann Struggles To Get Answers From Alvin Greene". New York. Archived from the original on June 13, 2010. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  22. ^ Schaller, Tom (June 12, 2010). "SC Democratic Primary Getting Weirder By The Hour". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  23. ^ Top Dem wants mystery candidate investigated. NBC News, June 10, 2010.
  24. ^ Cook, John. Where'd Alvin Greene get, K to run for Senate?[permanent dead link] Yahoo! News, June 10, 2010.
  25. ^ "How Did Alvin Greene Win In South Carolina?". NPR.org.
  26. ^ a b Kinnard, Meg (June 17, 2010) "SC Dems hearing protest over US Senate primary", The Associated Press. Retrieved June 17, 2010.
  27. ^ O'Donnell, Kelly (June 16, 2010) "SC Dems to hold hearing on Greene tomorrow", MSNBC.com. Retrieved June 17, 2010.
  28. ^ a b Capehart, Jonathan (June 18, 2010) "Green light for Alvin Greene's senate run". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 4, 2012., The Washington Post. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  29. ^ a b Washington, Wayne (June 18, 2010) "Democrats uphold Greene’s nomination for Senate" Archived June 19, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, The State.com. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  30. ^ Kinnard, Meg. "SC Dems uphold US Senate primary shocker"[dead link], The Associated Press. Retrieved June 17, 2010.
  31. ^ Toeplitz, Shira (June 18, 2010) "S.C. Dems reject Rawl appeal", Politico. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  32. ^ Monk, John. Greene’s finances subject of SLED investigation Archived July 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. The State, June 28, 2010.
  33. ^ Charles Riley; Peter Hamby (July 10, 2010). "Greene cleared in South Carolina investigation". Cnn.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2010. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
  34. ^ a b Siegel, Elyse (August 16, 2010). "Alvin Greene Howls After Obscenity Indictment Raised In Interview (VIDEO)". HuffPost.
  35. ^ SEELYE, KATHARINE Q. (July 10, 2010). "Enigmatic Jobless Man Prepares Senate Campaign". The New York Times.
  36. ^ Kinnard, Meg (July 12, 2010). "Alvin Greene, Enigmatic South Carolina Senate Candidate, To Make First Public Speech". Huffington Post. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  37. ^ Weiner, Juli (July 29, 2010). "Alvin Greene Documentarians Have Their Work Cut Out for Them". Vanity Fair.
  38. ^ "Alvin Greene's 'bizarre' CNN interview". theweek.com. June 14, 2010.
  39. ^ Coming soon: Alvin Greene, the movie Archived August 3, 2010, at the Wayback Machine Yahoo! News, Michael Calderone. July 29, 2010
  40. ^ "Alvin Greene: America's most unlikely politician". The Guardian. July 6, 2010.
  41. ^ Davis, Susan (July 26, 2010). "Alvin Greene Gets Most Media Attention – Washington Wire – WSJ". Blogs.wsj.com. Archived from the original on August 28, 2010. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
  42. ^ "Alvin Greene rap video removed from YouTube". WACH Fox News Center. July 27, 2010. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
  43. ^ "When I say Alvin, you say Greene". MSNBC.com. July 22, 2010. Archived from the original on July 25, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
  44. ^ Seelye, Katherine Q. (July 22, 2010). "Alvin Greene's 'On the Scene'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 23, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
  45. ^ Hamby, Peter (July 23, 2010). "'Alvin Greene is on the Scene': Not official, but Greene's listening". Cnn.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
  46. ^ Alvin Greene and the Strange Politics of South Carolina Archived August 12, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, by Terence Samuel, Washington Post Newsweek Interactive
  47. ^ Franke-Ruta, Garance. Clyburn: Alvin Greene is 'someone's plant' in South Carolina, The Washington Post blog, June 6, 2010. Retrieved June 15, 2010.
  48. ^ a b Khimm, Suzy. Mother Vows Revenge on Alvin Greene for Showing Porn to Her Daughter. Mother Jones. June 10, 2010.
  49. ^ a b Roig-Franzia, Manuel (June 11, 2010). "In South Carolina, Greene is mystery man despite winning Democratic Senate nod". The Washington Post.
  50. ^ a b Kinnard, Meg. Mystery S.C. Dem has pending felony charge[dead link] Associated Press. June 9, 2010.
  51. ^ "S.C. Democrat Greene urged to quit U.S. Senate race over obscenity charge". The Washington Post. June 10, 2010. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  52. ^ Alvin Greene Campaign Manager Suzanne Coe: His Honesty is Refreshing WLTX.com, Tony Santaella and James Gilbert. July 29, 2010
  53. ^ Strauss, Daniel (July 29, 2010). "Greene makes watchdog's 'crooked' list". POLITICO.
  54. ^ "Dupree promises to stir the pot". Independentmail.com. October 1, 2010. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved November 2, 2010.
  55. ^ NICK McCORMAC. "News – Sumter native launches write-in campaign for Senate". Theitem.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2010.
  56. ^ "SC – Election Results". Enr-scvotes.org. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  57. ^ "Failed U.S. Senate Candidate Alvin Greene Now Trying for South Carolina House Seat". FOX News. Associated Press. December 27, 2010. Retrieved December 28, 2010.
  58. ^ "Greene gets trounced in primary for SC House seat". WCSC. February 16, 2011. Archived from the original on September 18, 2014. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
  59. ^ Hunt, Kasie (November 10, 2010). "Alvin Greene mulls presidential bid". Politico. Archived from the original on November 11, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  60. ^ Hutchins, Corey (November 10, 2010). "Alvin Greene "Seriously Considering" Presidential Run in 2012". Columbia Free Times. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  61. ^ Greene, Alvin (August 27, 2010). "The Alvin Greene manifesto for a fairer America | Alvin Greene". The Guardian – via www.theguardian.com.
  62. ^ The Greene Manifesto: Reticent Candidate Tells All – Overseas Fox News, August 31, 2010
  63. ^ Seelye, Katharine Q. (July 10, 2010). "Greene's Personal Approach to His Political Platform". The New York Times.
  64. ^ a b Corbin, Cristina (March 27, 2015). "South Carolina Woman Outraged at Alleged Pursuer's Senate Candidacy". Fox News.
  65. ^ "Unknown Senate candidate in SC faces felony charge". The Seattle Times. June 10, 2010.
  66. ^ "Alvin Greene, Senate Candidate Charged with Felony, Speaks Out wltx.com | Columbia, SC News, Weather and Sports |". Wltx.com. November 12, 2009. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
  67. ^ Smith, Glenn (June 14, 2010). "Rawl files primary protest". Post and Courier.
  68. ^ A man way, way outside Beltway Los Angeles Times, Robin Abcarian. July 29, 2010
  69. ^ "Alvin Greene, Surprise Win in South Carolina Primary with Felony Pending – ABC News". Abcnews.go.com. June 9, 2010. Retrieved August 21, 2010.
  70. ^ Seelye, Katharine Q. (August 13, 2010). "S.C. Senate Candidate Is Charged With Obscenity". The New York Times.
  71. ^ "Greene accepts prosecutor's offer". Archived from the original on February 28, 2019. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
  72. ^ "Alvin Greene accepts pre-trial program to erase charges". Wach.com. June 10, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  73. ^ "Alvin Greene, former S.C. Senate candidate, arrested". Cbsnews.com. August 13, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  74. ^ Kropf, Schuyler (September 14, 2020). "Alvin Greene, celebrity candidate, lives in obscurity, approves of Donald Trump". The Post and Courier. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
[edit]
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator from South Carolina
(Class 1)
2010 		Succeeded by
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