Michanna Tate, has formally announced her campaign for South Carolina House of Representatives – District 14

A native of the Upstate of South Carolina and a resident of the City of Laurens, Michanna Tate promises to listen first and stand up for the residents of District 14.  

Michanna Tate, Managing Attorney of Access Law LLC, and Manager of KOT Pack and Ship LLC, in Laurens, has announced her candidacy for the South Carolina House of Representatives, District 14.  She promises to listen first, and to focus on issues affecting those in District 14.  Shewill focus on those issues in Columbia.

The thought of running for political office was planted by one of Michanna’s law firm clients,over a year ago.  That client told Attorney Tate, “You are so smart.  If you ever ran for office I would vote for you even if you ran as a candidate for a party I don’t usually vote for.”  This thought grew when several residents of Laurens County encouraged her to run.  Because Michanna is a natural planner and a researcher, she spoke with current and former members of the House before making her decision.  She also discussed the potential run with her husband, with them also weighing the impact it may have on their businesses.

Tate said. “I am running to ensure that residents of District 14 have someone looking out for their best interests.  Someone who is concerned about the things that affect the residents on a daily basis, from the moment they wake up for the day, until they go to bed each night.”

Michanna has a busy weekly routine of fulfilling Attorney duties at Access Law LLC and Manager duties at KOT Pack and Ship LLC.  KOT is located in the city of Laurens, being the only pack and ship store in Laurens County.  For that reason she interacts with residents of District 14 on a daily basis, excluding the weekends where you may catch her at Ingles or Walmart, just like any other District 14 resident.

Michanna Tate holds both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Biology, from Howard University, located in Washington, DC.  Her Master’s thesis focused on Stormwater Ponds due to her concentration in Environmental Science.  After graduating with her MS degree, while still living in the DC area, Michanna worked as a Molecular Biologist under a government contract for Biodefense and Emerging Infections Resources (BEI Resources).

Following her time in the DC area, Tate moved back home to the Upstate, teaching Biology at Greenville Technical College.  While there she decided to further her education.  She thought about focusing on Public Health, which led her to enroll as a Post-Baccalaureate student at Drexel University, graduating with Certification in Epidemiology & Biostatistics.

After teaching at Greenville Tech for one (1) year, Michanna Tate moved to Tampa Bay, Florida to attend law school at Stetson University College of Law, on a full scholarship.  After graduating law school in just 2.5 years, she returned to South Carolina to open her law firm, Michanna Talley, Attorney at Law, LLC, now known as Access Law LLC.

Attorney Tate became licensed in 2012 to practice law in the State of South Carolina.  She also later became licensed in the US District Court for South Carolina, and in the US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit.  In private practice Michanna has handled cases in multiple areas of law, including Family Law, Probate, Real Estate, Criminal Defense (everything from speeding tickets to Murder), Business Law, Estate Planning, Personal Injury, and Medical Malpractice.  Her current main focuses are Real Estate Litigation, Estate Planning, Personal Injury, and Medical Malpractice.  For several years, even while working as an Attorney, Michanna was also an Adjunct Professor at USC Upstate, teaching evening Biology 101 lab courses.

In 2020, Attorney Tate took a break from private practice in 2020, to accept a position as Attorney and Upstate Prosecutor for the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, which includes the South Carolina Highway Patrol and South Carolina Transport Police.  In this role she prosecuted DUIs within all 12 counties that make up the Upstate of South Carolina, including Laurens County.  She left that position in 2022 following the unexpected death of her father, also an attorney, to be able to take over his pending law cases and to close his law practice.

From now until November, Tate and her campaign will focus on meeting residents of District 14 and listening to their concerns.

“If elected, I will take my wide range of education and experience, coupled with the needs and wants of residents in District 14, to Columbia.”

“As manager of KOT Pack and Ship in Laurens, Monday through Friday, I interact with and gain insight into the wants and needs of District 14 residents.  I want to put that insight to work to better the lives of all Laurens County residents.”

For more information about Michanna Tate’s run for State House, visit VoteMichannaTate.com.

About Michanna Tate: Michanna is an Attorney and business owner and a native of the Upstate of South Carolina. She founded and owns Access Law LLC and manages KOT Pack and Ship LLC. She holds both BS and MS degrees in Biology from Howard University and a Juris Doctor degree from Stetson University College of Law.  She and her husband live in the City of Laurens.