South Carolina state legislative special elections, 2023

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In 2023, one special election was called to fill a vacant seat in the South Carolina State Legislature.

Click here to read more about the special election.

Senate special elections called:

How vacancies are filled in South Carolina


If there is a vacancy in the South Carolina Legislature, the presiding officer of the chamber in which the vacancy happens must call for a special election. If candidates plan to seek the nomination through a political party primary or a political party convention, the filing period begins on the third Friday after the vacancy occurs. The qualifying deadline is eight days after the filing period opens.[1]

If a candidate plans to seek the nomination via petition, all signatures must be submitted to the appropriate filing officer no later than 60 days before the election. All signatures must be verified by the filing officer no later than 45 days before the election.[2]

A primary election must be held on the eleventh Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. If necessary, a primary runoff must be held on the thirteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. The special election is held on the twentieth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. If the twentieth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs is less than 60 days prior to the general election, the special election must be held on the same day as the general election.[2][3]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: South Carolina Const. Art. III, § 25 and South Carolina Code Ann. § 7-13-190


About the legislature

The South Carolina State Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the South Carolina House of Representatives, with 124 members, and the South Carolina State Senate, with 46 members.

The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the most recent general elections prior to 2023. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).


South Carolina State Senate
Party As of November 3, 2020 After November 4, 2020
     Democratic Party 19 16
     Republican Party 27 30
Total 46 46


South Carolina House of Representatives
Party As of November 8, 2022 After November 9, 2022
     Democratic Party 43 36
     Republican Party 80 88
     Vacancy 1 0
Total 124 124

Special elections

Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

November 7, 2023

Historical data

There were 902 state legislative special elections that took place from 2010 to 2022. South Carolina held 36 special elections during the same time period; about three per year on average. The largest number of special elections in South Carolina took place in 2017 when six special elections were held.

The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year.

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2023

In 2023, 53 state legislative special elections were scheduled in 21 states. Between 2011 and 2022, an average of 68 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2023 special elections

In 2023, special elections for state legislative positions were held for the following reasons:

  • 10 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 32 due to resignation
  • 9 due to the death of the incumbent
  • 2 due to removal from office

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections was as follows:

As of December 3rd, 2024, Republicans controlled 55.08% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 44.02%. Republicans held a majority in 56 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 41 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions.

Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats
Legislative chamber Democratic Party Republican Party Grey.png Other Vacant
State senates 835 1,119 3 16
State houses 2,416 2,949 19 29
Total: 3,251

4,068

22

45


The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2023. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that were held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2023)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 33 33
     Republican Party 20 20
     Independent 0 0
Total 53 53

Flipped seats

In 2023, four seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.

Seats flipped from D to R

Seats flipped from R to D



See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Code," accessed February 17, 2021 (Statute 7-13-190 (A)-(B))
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Code," accessed February 17, 2021 (Statute 7-13-190 (B))
  3. ↑ South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Constitution," accessed February 17, 2021 (Article 3, Section 25)
  4. ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "State Senate District 42 Special Election," June 21, 2023
  5. ↑ " “Kimpson to Resign from SC Senate, joining Biden’s administration,” March 12, 2023
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