Mark Sanford is a current Republican presidential candidate and former South Carolina governor. He was also a congressmen representing South Carolina’s first district. Sanford is the author of  “The Trust Committed to Me,” in which he reflects on his time in congress and his belief in term limits. 

Sanford’s hometown is Fort Lauderdale, FL, despite his political career in South Carolina. He attended both the University of Virginia and Furman University.

 In 1989, he was married to his first wife who he had four sons with. They would then divorce after Sanford admitted to having an affair. This would come to impact his future career and reputablity. 

He defeated a crowded Republican primary field and faced off against Robert A. Barber Jr. to represent South Carolina’s first district in 1994. He would beat Barber 66.3 precent to 32.4 precent Sanford was recognized by The Libertarian Cato Institute as the most fiscally conservative member of congress in 1995. 

His policies on healthcare oppose the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as “Obama Care.” However, he does not support repealing the act and believes that Republicans need to come up with a replacement before dismantling the law. 

Sanford said that he would give “the health insurance they [need], rather than the health insurance the government prescribed.” 

He is in support of building a wall along the US’s border with Mexico. 

“The idea of a thousand people walking across your border is to make a mockery of the notion of rule of law,” Sanford said.

As for climate change, he acknowledges that it is a global threat. But, he opposes joining international agreements to fight climate change because he believes that they are too lenient on countries that have large carbon footprints. He doesn’t support a carbon tax out of fear that it will lead to an economic slowdown. 

Sanford is anti-abortion. He is also against LGBTQ rights, and would support an amendment banning gay marriage. 

On education, he supports merit pay for teachers and also endorsed voluntary teacher-led school prayer but, Sanford opposes common core and has advocated for an abstinence of sex education. 

Sanford is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and opposes most gun-control measures. 

Overall, It is unclear where he currently stands with voters since it is hard to override a current president in office.