Emotional UGA student gets hug from presidential candidate John Kasich

A University of Georgia student is making headlines after receiving a hug from presidential candidate John Kasich at a town hall event in South Carolina.

Brett Duncan Smith drove from UGA to the Wednesday event at Clemson University, where he shared some personal details about his life.

“Over a year ago, a man who was like my second dad, he killed himself. And then a few months later, my parents got a divorce, and then a few months later, my dad lost his job," Smith said. "I was in a really dark place for a long time, I was pretty depressed. I found hope in the Lord and in my friends and now I’ve found it in my presidential candidate that I support. And I would really appreciate one of those hugs you’ve been talking about.”

Kasich then walked up to Smith, gave him a hug, and spoke into his ear. The words were not quite picked up by the microphone.

Smith told The Washington Post the hug meant a lot. Read more about what Smith told the Post here.

This story was originally published February 19, 2016 at 12:29 PM with the headline "Emotional UGA student gets hug from presidential candidate John Kasich."