The Benjamin Firm, LLC

A graduate of the University of South Carolina and the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he served as President of Student Government and as President of the Student Bar Association, Steve Benjamin was elected Mayor of Columbia, South Carolina in April of 2010 with a vision of transforming South Carolina's largest and Capital City into the most talented, educated & entrepreneurial city in America. 

 

Prior to his service as mayor, Benjamin:

 

- served as special counsel at a national law firm, serving as co-bond counsel on the issuance of over $150 million in municipal debt.

 

- served on the Board of Directors, Audit & CRA Committees of a Financial institution with over $4 billion in Assets.

 

- served on the Board of Directors of a NYSE Traded Financial Services Company with a market capitalization of  over $1 billion. 

​

- served on the Board of Trustees of a not-for-profit hospital with $250 million in Assets

 

Benjamin has also served as President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, President of the African American Mayors Association and as Executive Chairman of Municipal Bonds for America.

 

In 1999 at age 29, Benjamin was appointed to Governor Jim Hodges' Cabinet as director of the state's second largest law enforcement agency. Benjamin served as the Chief Executive of the $43 million, 950-employee state agency. 

 

Benjamin serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of South Carolina’s top ranked Honors College titled “Columbia, South Carolina: Building a Great City” and is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi and Sigma Pi Phi fraternities.

 

Mayor Benjamin is married to the Honorable DeAndrea Gist Benjamin, Chief Judge (General Sessions) in South Carolina's Fifth Judicial Circuit. The two are the proud parents of two daughters.