[1] Wade then served in the administration of Governor Jim Hodges as director of the South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services.
[1][4] Wade also served in the Obama administration as a senior adviser to Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke.
[2] Wade's duties included serving as a liaison to states, businesses, trade associations, minority communities, and other federal agencies.
He also represented the Commerce Department at international forums and served on numerous presidential task forces.
[1] In December 2013, Wade announced his candidacy for the US Senate seat held by Republican incumbent Tim Scott in the 2014 election.