Local Issues

District 56 continues to be one of the fastest growing areas in South Carolina, bringing new families, businesses, and opportunities to our community. Growth should improve our quality of life, not strain our roads, schools, and public services. Responsible planning must come before unchecked development. Coach Meadow will champion smart growth policies that prepare our community for the future while protecting the quality of life that makes District 56 a great place to live.

Coach Meadow believes working families deserve the opportunity to get ahead, not just get by. Rising housing costs, higher insurance premiums, increasing utility bills, and everyday expenses are putting real pressure on families, seniors, and small businesses. She will fight for responsible policies that strengthen our economy, support local businesses, protect taxpayers, and make District 56 a place where people can afford to live, work, and thrive.

Right here in House District 56, nearly one in eight of our neighbors, 11.8% of the people in this district, has no health insurance at all. In Conway, where the poverty rate reaches 17.1%, families are forced to choose between a doctor’s visit and keeping the lights on. Across Myrtle Beach, service workers who keep our tourism economy running earn wages that cannot cover the premiums the marketplace demands.

Yet South Carolina remains one of just ten states that has refused to expand Medicaid, a decision that leaves an estimated 351,000 South Carolinians trapped in a coverage gap where they earn too much for traditional Medicaid but too little for marketplace subsidies. Our current representative, Tim McGinnis, has been in office since 2018 and has not supported efforts to close that gap.

Coach Meadow will fight to expand Medicaid so working families in Conway, Carolina Forest, and across the Grand Strand can see a doctor without going into debt. She will advocate for provider recruitment incentives to bring more primary care physicians and OB/GYNs to Horry County, where South Carolina’s maternal health challenges remain among the most serious in the nation. She will also protect the state’s 12-month postpartum Medicaid extension, a critical lifeline for new mothers.

Coach Meadow is proud to be endorsed by Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic because she believes healthcare decisions belong to patients and their providers, not politicians in Columbia or Washington. She will fight to protect access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion care, contraception, and preventive services.

Healthcare is not a partisan issue. It is a basic promise we make to one another as a community, and Jackee Meadow intends to keep it.

The tourism economy is the dominant economic engine in our district. Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand attract roughly 20 million visitors annually, supporting tens of thousands of jobs in hospitality, food service, retail, and entertainment. However, these jobs are disproportionately seasonal, low-wage, and lack benefits. Workers in the tourism sector face a structural squeeze: they earn tourism-area wages but pay tourism-area housing costs. Coach Meadow will work to ensure that we deliver for our community while also entertaining our tourists.

The families of House District 56 have built something to be proud of: a high school graduation rate of 94.8%, well above the South Carolina average of 89.6%, and a college graduation rate of 37.5%, which outpaces the state by six points. Nearly one in four district residents is currently enrolled in school, and the young families moving into Carolina Forest and Conway are choosing this community because they believe in the promise of its public schools.

That promise is under direct threat. In 2023 and again in 2025, the South Carolina legislature passed school voucher bills that divert public tax dollars to private schools, institutions that face no state accountability standards, can discriminate against LGBTQ students, and can expel pregnant teens. The state is projected to spend $96 million on these vouchers in 2026–27 alone. That is $96 million taken away from the public classrooms where the vast majority of House District 56 children learn. Tim McGinnis voted for those vouchers.

Jackee Meadow will vote against them every single time. She will fight for increased teacher pay to make South Carolina competitive with neighboring states, reduced class sizes in the overcrowded schools strained by Horry County’s rapid growth, and capital funding to build the new schools that Carolina Forest and Conway desperately need. Our children’s future should not be auctioned off to private interests. Jackee Meadow believes every public education dollar belongs in public schools, where every child has a seat, every teacher is supported, and every family has a voice.

Residents in unincorporated Horry County who receive water from the City of Conway pay significantly more than Grand Strand Water and Sewer Authority customers. Access to reliable and affordable water and sewer service should not depend on where you live. As District 56 continues to grow, aging infrastructure and increasing demand require thoughtful planning and responsible investment. Coach Meadow will advocate for fair, transparent policies and modern infrastructure that keeps pace with growth, protects our natural resources, and delivers reliable, affordable service for every resident.