| Elections in South Carolina |
|---|
 |
Prior to 1865, the Governor of South Carolina was chosen by the General Assembly. The Constitution of South Carolina provided for the voters of South Carolina to choose the governor; James Lawrence Orr was the first elected governor of South Carolina. The following is a list of gubernatorial election results for the state of South Carolina:
Results[edit]
| Year | Winner | Minority | County Map |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1865 | James Lawrence Orr No party 9,928 51.9% |
Wade Hampton III No party 9,186 48.1% |
|
| 1868 | Robert Kingston Scott Republican 69,693 75.1% |
William D. Porter Democrat 23,057 24.9% |
|
| 1870 | Robert Kingston Scott Republican 85,071 62.3% |
Richard B. Carpenter Union Reform 51,537 37.7% |
 |
| 1872 | Franklin J. Moses, Jr. Republican 69,838 65.4% |
Reuben Tomlinson Independent Republican 36,533 34.3% |
 |
| 1874 | Daniel Henry Chamberlain Republican 80,403 53.9% |
John T. Green Independent Republican 68,818 46.1% |
 |
| 1876 | Wade Hampton III Democrat 92,261 50.3% |
Daniel Henry Chamberlain Republican 91,127 49.7% |
 |
| 1878 | Wade Hampton III Democrat 119,550 99.8% |
Unopposed |  |
| 1880 | Johnson Hagood Democrat 117,432 96.4% |
L.W.R. Blair Greenback-Labor 4,277 3.5% |
 |
| 1882 | Hugh Smith Thompson Democrat 67,158 79.0% |
J. Hendrix McLane Greenback-Labor 17,719 20.8% |
 |
| 1884 | Hugh Smith Thompson Democrat 67,895 100% |
Unopposed |  |
| 1886 | John Peter Richardson III Democrat 33,114 99.9% |
Unopposed | |
| 1888 | John Peter Richardson III Democrat 58,730 100% |
Unopposed |  |
| 1890 | Ben Tillman Democrat 59,159 79.8% |
Alexander Cheves Haskell Straightout Democrat 14,828 20.0% |
 |
| 1892 | Ben Tillman Democrat 56,673 99.9% |
Unopposed |  |
| 1894 | John Gary Evans Democrat 39,507 69.6% |
Sampson Pope Independent 17,278 30.4% |
 |
| 1896 | William Haselden Ellerbe Democrat 59,424 89.1% |
Sampson Pope Reorganized Republican 4,432 6.6% |
 |
| 1898 | William Haselden Ellerbe Democrat 28,225 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1900 | Miles Benjamin McSweeney Democrat 46,457 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1902 | Duncan Clinch Heyward Democrat 31,817 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1904 | Duncan Clinch Heyward Democrat 51,917 100% |
Unopposed |  |
| 1906 | Martin Frederick Ansel Democrat 30,251 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1908 | Martin Frederick Ansel Democrat 61,060 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1910 | Coleman Livingston Blease Democrat 30,739 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1912 | Coleman Livingston Blease Democrat 44,122 99.5% |
R.B. Britton Socialist 208 0.5% |
|
| 1914 | Richard Irvine Manning III Democrat 34,606 99.8% |
R.B. Britton Socialist 83 0.2% |
|
| 1916 | Richard Irvine Manning III Democrat 60,405 97.9% |
Coleman Livingston Blease Independent 1,089 1.8% |
|
| 1918 | Robert Archer Cooper Democrat 25,267 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1920 | Robert Archer Cooper Democrat 58,050 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1922 | Thomas Gordon McLeod Democrat 34,065 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1924 | Thomas Gordon McLeod Democrat 53,545 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1926 | John Gardiner Richards, Jr. Democrat 16,589 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1930 | Ibra Charles Blackwood Democrat 17,790 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1934 | Olin D. Johnston Democrat 22,873 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1938 | Burnet Rhett Maybank Democrat 49,009 99.4% |
Joseph Augustis Tolbert Republican 283 0.6% |
|
| 1942 | Olin D. Johnston Democrat 23,859 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1946 | Strom Thurmond Democrat 26,520 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1950 | James F. Byrnes Democrat 50,633 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1954 | George Bell Timmerman, Jr. Democrat 214,204 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1958 | Ernest Hollings Democrat 77,714 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1962 | Donald Stuart Russell Democrat 253,704 100% |
Unopposed | |
| 1966 | Robert Evander McNair Democrat 255,854 58.2% |
Joseph O. Rogers, Jr. Republican 184,088 41.8% |
 |
| 1970 | John Carl West Democrat 251,151 52.1% |
Albert Watson Republican 221,236 45.9% |
 |
| 1974 | James Burrows Edwards Republican 266,338 50.3% |
W.J. Bryan Dorn Democrat 248,861 47.0% |
 |
| 1978 | Richard Riley Democrat 384,898 61.3% |
Edward Lunn Young Republican 236,946 37.7% |
 |
| 1982 | Richard Riley Democrat 468,787 69.8% |
W. D. Workman, Jr. Republican 202,806 30.2% |
 |
| 1986 | Carroll A. Campbell, Jr. Republican 384,565 51.0% |
Michael R. Daniel Democrat 361,328 47.9% |
 |
| 1990 | Carroll A. Campbell, Jr. Republican 528,831 69.5% |
Theo Mitchell Democrat 212,048 27.8% |
 |
| 1994 | David Beasley Republican 470,756 50.4% |
Nick Theodore Democrat 447,002 47.9% |
 |
| 1998 | Jim Hodges Democrat 570,070 53.3% |
David Beasley Republican 484,088 45.3% |
 |
| 2002 | Mark Sanford Republican 585,422 52.9% |
Jim Hodges Democrat 521,140 47.0% |
 |
| 2006 | Mark Sanford Republican 601,868 55.1% |
Tommy Moore Democrat 489,076 44.8% |
 |
| 2010 | Nikki Haley Republican 674,103 51.4% |
Vincent Sheheen Democrat 617,427 47.1% |
 |
| 2014 | Nikki Haley Republican 696,645 55.9% |
Vincent Sheheen Democrat 516,166 41.4% |
|
| 2018 | Henry McMaster Republican 921,324 54.0% |
James Smith Democrat 784,182 45.9% |
|
| 2022 | Henry McMaster Republican 988,501 58.1% |
Joe Cunningham Democrat 692,691 40.7% |
|
Statistics[edit]
Firsts[edit]
- The gubernatorial election of 1865 was the first gubernatorial election of South Carolina.
- The gubernatorial election of 1896 was the first gubernatorial election that featured the use of a primary election.
- The gubernatorial election of 1898 was the first gubernatorial election that featured the use of a runoff election.
Votes[edit]
- There have been 51 gubernatorial elections in South Carolina.
- Democrats have won 40 of the 47 (85%) elections that they nominated a candidate.
- Republicans have won 10 of the 18 (56%) elections that they nominated a candidate.
- James Lawrence Orr won with the smallest margin of victory in the gubernatorial election of 1865: 743.
- The gubernatorial election of 1926 had the lowest vote: 16,589.
- The gubernatorial election of 2018 had the largest vote: 1,705,506.
Unique politicians[edit]
- Only three governors have been defeated for reelection: Daniel Henry Chamberlain in 1876, David Beasley in 1998 and Jim Hodges in 2002.
- Coleman Livingston Blease has made the most attempts for governor (8): 1906, 1908, 1910, 1912, 1916, 1922, 1934 and 1938. He was successful in 1910 and 1912.
