Columbia senator is Senate’s new top dog

A Midlands senator is the new leader in the Senate.

Tuesday, Sen. John Courson, R-Richland was chosen in a 27 to 17 vote by his fellow senators to serve as the new Senate president pro tem, replacing Glenn McConnell, a Charleston Republican who was sworn in as the state’s new lieutenant governor.

Courson beat Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harvey Peeler, R-Cherokee, for the post.

Courson, 67, has been a senator since 1985 and is an insurance executive with Keenan & Suggs.

He and his wife Elizabeth, have three children.

Read more in tomorrow’s The State.

This story was originally published March 13, 2012 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Columbia senator is Senate’s new top dog."