Last night's victory in South Carolina's Democratic Senate primary has placed candidate Alvin Greene, at least momentarily, in the national spotlight. What sets Mr. Greene apart from the hundreds of other candidates in the November mid-term elections? The fact that, until last night, virtually no one had even heard of him.

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The unemployed 32-year-old Army veteran raised no campaign funds, had no signs or website and no one, including the candidate, can name any campaign appearances he might have made. And yet he soundly defeated former judge and state legislator Vic Rawl, the well-funded Democratic establishment candidate. State Democratic Party Chairwoman Carol Fowler tried to explain Mr. Greene's victory by suggesting that Democratic voters who didn't know anything about either candidate may have voted alphabetically. (source)

Asked in a post-primary interview if he was surprised by his victory, Mr. Greene replied "I wasn’t surprised, but not really. I mean, just a little, but not much. I knew I was on top of my campaign, and just stayed on top of everything, I just - I wasn't surprised that much, just a little. I knew that I worked hard and did." (source) That kind of concise, informative response is going to make any upcoming debate between Mr. Greene and his general election opponent, incumbent Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) absolutely must-see-tv.

According to the unemployed Democrat, his upcoming campaign will center on his unemployment. "I'm currently one of the many unemployed in the state and this country. South Carolina has more unemployed now than at any other time," said Mr. Greene. "My campaign slogan: Let's get South Carolina back to work."

Nice idea but a virtually unknown Democratic candidate with a catchy slogan and no discernable skills or plausible ideas for how to deliver on the ultra-vague promise could never win, right?

UPDATE #1: Senate Candidate Alvin Greene (D-South Carolina) is facing a pending felony charge. Court records show Mr. Greene was arrested in November and charged with showing obscene Internet photos to a University of South Carolina student. The felony charge carries up to five years in prison. When a reporter asked about the charge by telephone Wednesday, Mr. Greene said he had no comment and hung up on the reporter. (source)

UPDATE #2: South Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Carol Fowler has now called for Mr. Greene to withdraw from the race, saying in a statement that "this new information about Mr. Greene would certainly have affected the decisions of many of those voters."

Her statement went on to say, "We are proud to have nominated a Democratic ticket this year that, with the apparent exception of Mr. Greene, reflects South Carolina's values. Our candidates want to give this state a new beginning without the drama and irresponsibility of the past eight years, and the charges against Mr. Greene indicate that he cannot contribute to that new beginning. I hope he will see the wisdom of leaving the race." (source)