EASLEY — Easley resident Rick Tate filed paperwork to run for the SC House District 5 seat on March 18.

The district includes Easley and parts of Dacusville, Liberty and Powdersville.

Tate said for him, the responsibility of being a House Representative includes being a delegate and trustee on behalf of the people in Pickens County.

Tate said he has helped Pickens County residents stand up to establishment politicians who have ignored the interests of the taxpayers. In 2015, Tate was elected first vice chairman of the Pickens County Republican Party.

Since the 1990s, Tate said he has worked with other citizens to engage elected officials over issues such as education.

“Becoming a parent brought home the importance of choices we have to make about our children’s education,” he said. ” I looked at options we had as parents and became an advocate of school choice.”

Underfunding of the state’s school districts has been a major issue for Tate.

On business-related issues, Tate said “I have been in a supervisory position making tough decisions about others’ employment. Having had my own small business, to me taxes and regulation are realities, not just political buzzwords.”

The South Carolina Republican primary is set for June 14.