Newt's South Carolina team is announced

(Update: CNN reports that Newt's South Carolina operation is the biggest of any campaign to date.)

Greenville, SC - Joining two long term advisors who recently moved to South Carolina to direct Newt 2012's First in the South primary bid -- Adam Waldeck as State Director and Vince Haley as Policy Director - the campaign has expanded its paid staff to include several veteran activists and tea party leaders.

Adam has worked as the campaign's Coalitions Director and has deep ties into the tea party movement and conservative groups. Haley has been Director of Policy for American Solutions and a Research Director for Gingrich at the American Enterprise Institute.

Assisting in the statewide effort are Ruth Sherlock and Leslie Gaines of Sherlock and Gaines Consulting Group of Greenville. Gaines and Sherlock bring many years of experience in planning, organizing and scheduling in the political arena. Sherlock worked across the country for the Republican National Committee but is best known for helping elect the first Vietnamese American to the U.S. House in 2008. Gaines is well respected in South Carolina for her fundraising success for several presidential and winning statewide candidates and numerous non-profit organizations.

The statewide team will include Regional Directors: Joshua Putnam, the youngest state representative currently serving in South Carolina’s legislature who will lead the Upstate; DeLinda Ridings, a well known political operative will represent the Midlands; noted Myrtle Beach tea party leader Gerri McDaniel has also joined the team to help organize grassroots efforts in the Pee Dee region. Chris Horne, another Tea Party veteran, preacher and internet marketing expert will lead the effort in Charleston. Also hailing from the Charleston area is Joanne Jones, Vice Chairman of the Charleston Tea Party, who will organize coalitions for the campaign.

The Newt 2012 statewide headquarters will be located at 700 Woodruff Road, Suite 6 in Greenville. The official opening will be on Saturday, November 12, 2011.

From Ali Weinberg of NBC News:

Among the nine members of the Newt Gingrich South Carolina team (who were officially named on Monday) is a former member of Team Huntsman.

Grassroots organizer DeLinda Ridings was, until last week, the Huntsman campaign's Midlands field director.

...

Ridings is also the secretary of the South Carolina Republican Party.

The Gingrich campaign also signed on state Rep. Josh Putnam as his Upstate field director. At 22, Putnam is the youngest lawmaker in the South Carolina statehouse, having won a special election here in August 2011.