South Carolina gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018

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General election

General election for Governor of South Carolina

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Henry McMaster
Henry McMaster (R)
 
54.0
 
921,342
Image of James Smith Jr.
James Smith Jr. (D)
 
45.9
 
784,182
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
2,045

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,707,569
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates


2022 →
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Governor and Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 30, 2018
Primary: June 12, 2018
Primary runoff: June 26, 2018 (if needed)
General: November 6, 2018
Pre-election incumbent(s):
Gov. Henry McMaster (Republican)
Lt. Gov. Kevin Bryant (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in South Carolina
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Likely Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness
State executive elections in 2018
Impact of term limits in 2018
State government trifectas
State government triplexes
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
South Carolina
executive elections
Governor

Lieutenant governor
Attorney general
Secretary of state
Treasurer
Comptroller
Agriculture commissioner
Superintendent of education

South Carolina held elections for governor and lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 30, 2018.

The winners of the primaries were incumbent Henry McMaster (R) and state Rep. James Smith, Jr. (D). Their running mates were Pamela Evette (R) and Mandy Powers Norrell (D).

Democratic Party For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
Republican Party For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

For more information on gubernatorial elections in 2018, click here. For more information on lieutenant gubernatorial elections in 2018, click here.

SETTING THE STAGE
  • Heading into the 2018 election, the sitting governor was Henry McMaster (R), who took office on January 25, 2017, following the resignation of Nikki Haley to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. McMaster sought re-election in 2018.
  • At the time of the 2018 election, South Carolina was a Republican trifecta. It first gained this status when Gov. Mark Sanford (R) took office in 2003. South Carolina was a Republican triplex in 2018.
  • South Carolina had been won by the Republican candidate in each of the five presidential elections leading up to the 2018 election. The widest margin of victory was George W. Bush's 17 percent margin in 2004 while the narrowest was John McCain's 9 percent margin in 2008.

    • South Carolina was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election. Click here for more information on other 2018 gubernatorial elections.


    Candidates and election results

    See also: Statistics on gubernatorial candidates, 2018

    General election

    General election for Governor of South Carolina

    Incumbent Henry McMaster defeated James Smith Jr. in the general election for Governor of South Carolina on November 6, 2018.

    Candidate
    %
    Votes
    ✔
    Image of Henry McMaster
    		Henry McMaster (R)
     
    54.0
     
    		921,342
    Image of James Smith Jr.
    		James Smith Jr. (D)
     
    45.9
     
    		784,182
     Other/Write-in votes
     
    0.1
     
    		2,045

    Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

    		Total votes: 1,707,569
    Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
    If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

    Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

    Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

    Republican primary runoff election

    Republican primary runoff for Governor of South Carolina

    Incumbent Henry McMaster defeated John Warren in the Republican primary runoff for Governor of South Carolina on June 26, 2018.

    Candidate
    %
    Votes
    ✔
    Image of Henry McMaster
    		Henry McMaster
     
    53.6
     
    		184,286
    Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
    		John Warren
     
    46.4
     
    		159,349

    Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

    		Total votes: 343,635
    Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
    If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

    Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

    Democratic primary election

    Democratic primary for Governor of South Carolina

    James Smith Jr. defeated Marguerite Willis and Phil Noble in the Democratic primary for Governor of South Carolina on June 12, 2018.

    Candidate
    %
    Votes
    ✔
    Image of James Smith Jr.
    		James Smith Jr.
     
    61.8
     
    		148,633
    Image of Marguerite Willis
    		Marguerite Willis
     
    27.5
     
    		66,248
    Image of Phil Noble
    		Phil Noble
     
    10.6
     
    		25,587

    There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

    		Total votes: 240,468
    Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
    If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

    Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

    Republican primary election

    Republican primary for Governor of South Carolina

    Incumbent Henry McMaster and John Warren advanced to a runoff. They defeated Catherine Templeton, Kevin Bryant, and John McGill in the Republican primary for Governor of South Carolina on June 12, 2018.

    Candidate
    %
    Votes
    ✔
    Image of Henry McMaster
    		Henry McMaster
     
    42.3
     
    		155,723
    ✔
    Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
    		John Warren
     
    27.8
     
    		102,390
    Image of Catherine Templeton
    		Catherine Templeton
     
    21.4
     
    		78,705
    Image of Kevin Bryant
    		Kevin Bryant
     
    6.7
     
    		24,790
    Image of John McGill
    		John McGill
     
    1.7
     
    		6,375

    Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

    		Total votes: 367,983
    Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
    If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

    Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

    Lieutenant gubernatorial election

    General election candidates


    Past elections

    2014

    See also: South Carolina gubernatorial election, 2014

    Nikki Haley ran for a second term as governor in the 2014 elections and won re-election.

    Haley won the Republican nomination, running unopposed in the primary on June 10. The general election took place on November 4, 2014.[1]

    Results

    General election
    Governor of South Carolina, 2014
    Party Candidate Vote % Votes
         Republican Green check mark transparent.pngNikki Haley Incumbent 55.9% 696,645
         Democratic Vincent Sheheen 41.4% 516,166
         Libertarian Steve French 1.2% 15,438
         Independent Tom Ervin 0.9% 11,496
         United Citizens Morgan Reeves 0.5% 5,622
         Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.1% 934
    Total Votes 1,246,301
    Election results via South Carolina State Election Commission

    Context of the 2018 election

    Race rating

    Race ratings: South Carolina gubernatorial election, 2018
    Race trackerRace ratings
    November 5, 2018October 30, 2018October 23, 2018October 16, 2018
    The Cook Political ReportLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely RepublicanLikely Republican
    Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
    Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
    Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

    Wave election analysis

    See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)

    The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?

    Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.

    Applying this definition to gubernatorial elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose seven seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.

    The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 11 gubernatorial waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.

    Gubernatorial wave elections
    Year President Party Election type Gubernatorial seats change Elections analyzed[2]
    1970 Nixon R First midterm -12 35
    1922 Harding R First midterm -11 33
    1932 Hoover R Presidential -10 35
    1920 Wilson D Presidential -10 36
    1994 Clinton D First midterm -10 36
    1930 Hoover R First midterm -9 33
    1938 Roosevelt D Second midterm -9 33
    1966 Johnson D First midterm[3] -9 35
    1954 Eisenhower R First midterm -8 33
    1982 Reagan R First midterm -7 36
    2010 Obama D First midterm -7 33

    Republican winning streak

    See also: Winning streaks in 2018 gubernatorial elections

    McMaster's victory in the general election was the fifth in a series beginning with Mark Sanford's (R) victory in 2002, continuing a record-long Republican winning streak in South Carolina gubernatorial elections. The longest Democratic winning streak in state history was 37 elections, occurring between 1876 and 1970.

    State overview

    Partisan control

    This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in South Carolina heading into the 2018 elections.

    Congressional delegation

    State executives

    State legislature

    • Republicans controlled both chambers of the South Carolina State Legislature. They had a 80-44 majority in the state House and a 27-19 majority in the state Senate.

    Trifecta status

    2018 elections

    See also: South Carolina elections, 2018

    South Carolina held elections for the following positions in 2018:

    Demographics

    Demographic data for South Carolina
     South CarolinaU.S.
    Total population:4,894,834316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):30,0613,531,905
    Race and ethnicity**
    White:67.2%73.6%
    Black/African American:27.5%12.6%
    Asian:1.4%5.1%
    Native American:0.3%0.8%
    Pacific Islander:0.1%0.2%
    Two or more:2%3%
    Hispanic/Latino:5.3%17.1%
    Education
    High school graduation rate:85.6%86.7%
    College graduation rate:25.8%29.8%
    Income
    Median household income:$45,483$53,889
    Persons below poverty level:22%11.3%
    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
    Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in South Carolina.
    **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

    As of July 2016, South Carolina's three largest cities were Charleston (pop. est. 135,000), Columbia (pop. est. 133,000), and North Charleston (pop. est. 111,000).[4]

    State election history

    This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in South Carolina from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the South Carolina Election Commission.

    Historical elections

    Presidential elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the presidential election in South Carolina every year from 2000 to 2016.

    Election results (President of the United States), South Carolina 2000-2016
    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2016 Republican Party Donald Trump 54.9% Democratic Party Hillary Clinton 40.7% 14.2%
    2012 Republican Party Mitt Romney 54.6% Democratic Party Barack Obama 44.1% 10.5%
    2008 Republican Party John McCain 53.9% Democratic Party Barack Obama 44.9% 9.0%
    2004 Republican Party George W. Bush 58.0% Democratic Party John Kerry 40.9% 17.1%
    2000 Republican Party George W. Bush 56.8% Democratic Party Al Gore 40.9% 15.9%

    U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in South Carolina from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

    Election results (U.S. Senator), South Carolina 2000-2016
    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2016 Republican Party Tim Scott 60.6% Democratic Party Thomas Dixon 36.9% 23.7%
    2014[5] Republican Party Tim Scott 61.1% Democratic Party Joyce Dickerson 37.1% 24.0%
    2014 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 54.3% Democratic Party Brad Hutto 38.8% 15.5%
    2010 Republican Party Jim DeMint 61.5% Democratic Party Alvin Greene 27.7% 33.8%
    2008 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 57.5% Democratic Party Bob Conley 42.3% 15.2%
    2004 Republican Party Jim DeMint 53.7% Democratic Party Inez Tenenbaum 44.1% 9.6%
    2002 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 54.4% Democratic Party Alex Sanders 44.2% 10.2%

    Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in South Carolina.

    Election results (Governor), South Carolina 2000-2016
    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2014 Republican Party Nikki Haley 55.9% Democratic Party Vincent Sheheen 41.4% 14.5%
    2010 Republican Party Nikki Haley 51.4% Democratic Party Vincent Sheheen 46.9% 4.5%
    2006 Republican Party Mark Sanford 55.1% Democratic Party Kerry Healey 44.8% 10.3%
    2002 Republican Party Mark Sanford 52.8% Democratic Party Jim Hodges 47.0% 5.8%

    Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent South Carolina in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

    Congressional delegation, South Carolina 2000-2016
    Year Republicans Republicans (%) Democrats Democrats (%) Balance of power
    2016 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
    2014 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
    2012 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
    2010 Republican Party 5 83.3% Democratic Party 1 16.7% R+4
    2008 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
    2006 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
    2004 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
    2002 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
    2000 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2

    Trifectas, 1992-2017

    A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

    South Carolina Party Control: 1992-2025
    No Democratic trifectas  •  Twenty-three years of Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
    Governor R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
    Senate D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
    House D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R


    Pivot Counties

    See also: Pivot Counties by state

    Five of 46 South Carolina counties—10.9 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

    Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
    County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
    Barnwell County, South Carolina 5.16% 5.33% 1.65%
    Calhoun County, South Carolina 2.83% 4.31% 3.55%
    Chester County, South Carolina 4.83% 10.58% 8.30%
    Colleton County, South Carolina 8.49% 0.19% 0.53%
    McCormick County, South Carolina 3.32% 3.60% 6.08%

    In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won South Carolina with 54.9 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 40.7 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, South Carolina cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 53.3 percent of the time. In that same time frame, South Carolina supported Democratic candidates for president more often than Republican candidates, 53.3 to 43.3 percent. South Carolina favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.

    Presidential results by legislative district

    The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in South Carolina. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns show the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns show the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[6][7]

    In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 39 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 32.8 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 38 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 28.3 points. Clinton won one district controlled by a Republican heading into the 2018 elections.
    In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 85 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 28.7 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 86 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 30.1 points. Trump won seven districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.


    Recent news

    The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms South Carolina governor election 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

    South Carolina gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2018 - Google News

    See also

    South Carolina government:

    Elections:

    Ballotpedia exclusives:

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "Candidate Tracking," March 27, 2014
    2. ↑ The number of gubernatorial seats up for election varies, with as many as 36 seats and as few as 12 seats being up in a single even-numbered year.
    3. ↑ Lyndon Johnson's (D) first term began in November 1963 after the death of President John F. Kennedy (D), who was first elected in 1960. Before Johnson had his first midterm in 1966, he was re-elected president in 1964.
    4. ↑ South Carolina Demographics, "South Carolina Cities by Population," accessed September 5, 2018
    5. ↑ Special election
    6. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
    7. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
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