Gilda Cobb-Hunter is a native of Gifford, F.L., attending Florida A&M University for a bachelor’s in African-American History and Florida State University for a master’s in American History. She received an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters from the Medical University of South Carolina, the College of Charleston, and Francis Marion University. She received the David Wilkins Legislative Leadership Award from the Riley Institute at Furman University.
She became the first African American woman in Orangeburg County elected to be a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Cobb-Hunter went on to be the first freshman appointed to and is the ranking member, 1st Vice Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. She also is a member of the Joint Bond Review Committee.