Seneca Native Elected to State Supreme Court

A Seneca High School graduate, Letitia Hamilton Verdin, has been elected to the South Carolina Supreme Court. In a unanimous 152-0 vote by the House of Representatives and the Senate, Verdin, 53, was confirmed as the newest justice. The other candidates, Jocelyn Newman and Blake Hewitt, withdrew before the vote.

Verdin, daughter of the late Harry R. Hamilton and Angela Blackston Hamilton, graduated from Seneca High School in 1988, earned her bachelor’s degree from Furman University in 1992, and her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina in 1997.

Previously, she served as a Family Court Judge and was appointed to the State Court of Appeals in 2023. Local leaders, including Seneca High School Principal Ashley Ramirez and School District Superintendent Michael Thorsland, expressed pride in Verdin’s achievement, highlighting her as an inspiration for students.