South Carolina’s Stovall Witte recently signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge in his bid for the state's first Congressional district. Witte is running in a competitive GOP Primary with multiple pledge signers for what will be an open seat in the upcoming 2010 midterm elections.

Witte heads into the June GOP Primary for the chance to run for the open seat that will be vacated by retiring Congressman Henry Brown. A pledge signer, Rep. Brown has an ATR lifetime rating of 96%. The district has a Cook Political Report PVI of R+10, and the GOP candidate for President has won the district the last three consecutive general elections with more than 50% of the vote; so whomever emerges victorious after the primary should be in pretty good shape for the November election.

ATR continues to reach out to candidates from every state urging them to stand with the taxpayer and sign the pledge.

The official release from ATR can be read below:

Stovall Witte (R-S.C.) Signs the Taxpayer Protection Pledge
Congressional candidate promises to protect taxpayers’ wallets

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Stovall Witte, a Republican running in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional district, recently signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge sponsored by Americans for Tax Reform (ATR). The Pledge commits signers to “oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses … and oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates.”

ATR has offered the Pledge to all candidates for federal office since 1987. To date, 34 U.S. senators and 173 members of the U.S. House of Representatives have signed the Pledge. Additionally, seven Governors and over 1,100 state legislators have signed the Pledge.

“After the passage of the so-called “Stimulus Package,” better known as the Pelosi-Obama-Reid Spending Give-Away, Americans are desperately searching for candidates and politicians that will protect their livelihoods and put their wallets ahead of the federal government’s coffers,” said Grover Norquist, president of ATR.

“By signing the Pledge, Stovall Witte demonstrates that he understands the problems of hard-working taxpayers nationwide, but especially the taxpayers in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional district.”