SC federal judge nominee Sheria Clarke heads to US Senate

Attorney Sheria Clarke cleared one of the last hurdles on her way to an elite South Carolina federal judgship when the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee voted to pass her out of committee on Thursday.

Next stop: the 100-member Republican-controlled U.S. Senate, where she is expected to be confirmed.

A federal judgship is a lifetime job and pays $249,000.

Clarke’s political connections to Sens. Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham, both Republican senators from South Carolina, and to former U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy, helped her get the nomination from President Donald Trump.

Graham spoke at Clarke’s hearing Thursday, praising her qualifications and the work she had done over the years for various Congressional committees.

“(Sheria) is one of the most qualified people I have ever brought to the committee,:” said Graham, praising her as “just a special person, highly intelligent, even-keeled and humble is what everybody says about her.”

Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond Law School who is an expert on the federal judiciary, described Clarke as a “very strong” candidate for a judge’s post..

“She got a number of Democratic votes too,” Tobias said.

The vote to pass her out of committe was 15-7, with Clarke getting some votes from Democratic senators, Tobias said.

Unlike some of other Trump nominees to be a federal judge who traffic in conspiracy theories or who have little experience, gClarke has solid credentials on her own as an attorney, a high-profile Congressional staffer for Gowdy and a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s office in Columbia. She is in her mid-40s and currently works for Nelson Mullins, a top tier law firm.

“Sheria is a dynamic litigator and former prosecutor with extensive experience in white collar and regulatory matters, government investigations, and Congressional oversight investigations. Characterized by her diplomatic disposition, she is particularly skilled in forging cross-party relationships which makes her particularly effective in avoiding and resolving conflict,” her biography on Nelson Mullins’ internet page says.

Born in Lynchburg, Va., Clarke spent most her life in Virginia, North Carolina and Washington, D.C., before moving to South Carolina in 2019, according to her resume on file with the Senate Judiciary Committee. Since 2019 she has worked for the U.S. Attorney’s office in South Carolina and Nelson Mullins.

Clarke graduated from the evangelical Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., before working her way through law school at the University of North Carolina.

Clarke will become a federal judge soon after being confirmed by the Senate, Tobias predicted.

“Sometime in May, I would assume,” Tobias said.

Clarke will take of the place of U.S. Judge Bryan Harwell, who is now on senior status. She is expected to be based in Florence.

This story was originally published May 1, 2026 at 5:30 AM with the headline "SC federal judge nominee Sheria Clarke heads to US Senate."