Rep. Nathan Ballentine was born in Richland County, graduated from the University of South Carolina, and has worked, lived, and raised his family in the Irmo/Chapin area of the Midlands for almost three decades.
Rep. Ballentine has served his community in the SC House since 2005, first running as a CVSC- endorsed candidate focused on restoring funding to the South Carolina Conservation Bank. Over his 7 terms in the House, Ballentine has built a reputation as a conservative leader who relies on common-sense values to improve his community and its quality of life.
Over his House tenure, Ballentine has earned an 82% lifetime score on the CVSC Conservation Scorecard. He has consistently supported land protection efforts like the Conservation Bank and worked to advance a clean energy future for our state. Ballentine formerly served on the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee where he was a champion for increased energy competition and clean energy. He now sits on the influential Ways & Means Committee.
In the wake of the VC Summer failure, Ballentine helped to form the bipartisan South Carolina Energy Caucus and currently serves as one of its Co-Chairs. In this role, he facilitated multiple briefings in 2018 and 2019 on clean energy legislation and aided in the passage of the Energy Freedom Act. As both a cosponsor of the Energy Freedom Act and tireless champion for clean energy, Ballentine has worked with his fellow conservatives to build a strong, pro-solar majority in the South Carolina House. He quietly works behind the scenes in the Republican caucus to ensure that conservation continues to have strong conservative support, reminding his colleagues that conservation is a bipartisan South Carolina value.