South Carolina State Senate elections

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See also
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State legislative elections, 2026
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This page displays election information for the South Carolina State Senate.

## Contents

* 1 Elections
* 1.1 2024
* 1.2 2020
* 1.3 2016
* 1.4 2012
* 1.5 2008
* 1.6 2004
* 1.7 2000
* 2 Historical party control
* 2.1 Trifecta history
* 3 Footnotes

## Elections[edit]

South Carolina state senators serve four-year terms, with all seats up for election every four years. South Carolina holds elections for its legislature in even years.

### 2024[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2024

Elections for the South Carolina State Senate took place in 2024. The general election was on November 5, 2024. The primary was June 11, 2024, and the primary runoff was June 25, 2024. The filing deadline was April 1, 2024.

Heading into the election, Republicans held a 30-15 majority with one vacancy. Republicans gained four seats in the election, giving them a 34-12 majority.

South Carolina State Senate

Party  | As of November 5, 2024  | After November 6, 2024
| Democratic Party | 15  | 12
| Republican Party | 30 | 34
| Independent  | 1  | 0
Total |  46 |  46

### 2020[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2020

Elections for the office of South Carolina State Senate took place in 2020. The general election was held on November 3, 2020. A primary was scheduled for June 9, 2020, and a primary runoff was scheduled for June 23, 2020. The filing deadline was March 30, 2020.

Heading into the election, Republicans held a 27-19 majority. Republicans gained three seats in the election, giving them a 30-16 majority.

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

### 2016[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for the South Carolina State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 14, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The primary runoff election was held on June 28, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 30, 2016. All 46 seats in the South Carolina State Senate were up for election in 2016.

Heading into the election, Republicans held a 28-18 majority. No partisan change occurred in the election.

South Carolina State Senate

Party  | As of November 7, 2016  | After November 8, 2016
| Democratic Party | 18  | 18
| Republican Party | 28 | 28
Total |  46 |  46
Click [show] to see election information dating back to 2000

### 2012[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2012

Elections for the office of South Carolina State Senate took place in 2012. The primary election was held on June 12, 2012, and the general election was held on November 6, 2012. The candidate filing deadline was March 30, 2012. A total of 46 seats were up for election.

Heading into the election, Republicans held a 27-19 majority. Republicans gained one seat in the election, giving them a 28-18 majority.

| South Carolina State Senate

Party  | As of November 5, 2012  | After the 2012 Election
| Democratic Party | 19  | 18
| Republican Party | 27 | 28
Total |  46 |  46

The following table details the 10 districts with the smallest margin of victory in the November 6 general election.

2012 Margin of Victory, South Carolina State Senate

District  | Winner  | Margin of Victory  | Total Votes  | Top Opponent
District 10 |  Floyd Nicholson | 7.1% | 37,852 | Jennings McAbee, Sr.
District 23 |  Katrina Shealy | 7.4% | 32,735 | John Knotts
District 35 |  Thomas McElveen | 9.7% | 40,997 | Tony Barwick
District 41 |  Paul Thurmond | 11.6% | 49,968 | Paul Tinkler
District 20 |  John Courson | 21% | 42,923 | Robert Rikard
District 26 |  Nikki Setzler | 21% | 36,177 | Deedee Vaughters
District 2 |  Larry Martin | 29.1% | 37,285 | Rex Rice
District 12 |  Lee Bright | 29.1% | 44,583 | Henri Thompson
District 7 |  Karl Allen | 31% | 33,651 | Jane Kizer
District 28 |  Greg Hembree | 32.4% | 39,499 | Butch Johnson

### 2008[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2008

Elections for the office of South Carolina State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 10, 2008, and a general election on November 4, 2008.

During the 2008 election, the total value of contributions to Senate candidates was $11,006,391. The top 10 contributors were:[1]

2008 Donors, South Carolina State Senate

Donor  | Amount
Elliott, Dick F  | $402,000
Cromer, Ronnie W  | $175,000
South Carolina Bank & Trust  | $101,134
Anderson, Greg  | $100,000
Davis, Thomas C  | $95,566
Senate Republican Caucus Of South Carolina  | $91,925
Rose, Mike  | $85,667
Peeler, Harvey  | $85,500
Senate Democratic Caucus Of South Carolina  | $65,000
Scana Corp  | $59,000

### 2004[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2004

Elections for the office of South Carolina State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 8, 2004, and a general election on November 2, 2004.

During the 2004 election, the total value of contributions to Senate candidates was $10,207,188. The top 10 contributors were:[2]

2004 Donors, South Carolina State Senate

Donor  | Amount
Norwood, Timothy F  | $648,935
Cromer, Ronnie W  | $236,000
Bryant, Kevin L  | $143,848
Kuhn, John R  | $140,783
Cmte To Elect Chuck Allen  | $137,000
Wukela, Steve J  | $102,000
Jones, Richard C (Dickie)  | $100,100
Elliott, Dick  | $100,000
Elliott, Dick  | $100,000
Senate Republican Caucus Of South Carolina  | $83,000

### 2000[edit]

See also: South Carolina State Senate elections, 2000

Elections for the office of South Carolina State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 13, 2000, and a general election on November 7, 2000.

During the 2000 election, the total value of contributions to Senate candidates was $6,670,088. The top 10 contributors were:[3]

2000 Donors, South Carolina State Senate

Donor  | Amount
Leatherman, Hugh Kenneth  | $297,500
Senate Republican Caucus Of South Carolina  | $116,000
Grooms, Larry  | $106,802
Rice Jr, E Blair  | $101,000
Canty, Ralph  | $65,216
Clemmons, Alan  | $58,000
California Manufactured Housing Institute  | $48,100
South Carolina Automobile Dealers Association  | $42,720
South Carolina Optometric Association  | $39,050
Lawson, Blane H  | $38,428

## Historical party control[edit]

Republicans won control of the South Carolina State Senate in 2000. In 2024, they won a 34-12 majority.

The table below shows the partisan history of the South Carolina Senate following every general election from 1992 to 2024. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

South Carolina State Senate election results: 1992-2024

Party  | '92  | '96  | '00  | '04  | '08  | '12  | '16  | '20  | '24

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Democrats | 30 | 26 | 22 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 12
Republicans | 16 | 20 | 24 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 30 | 34

### Trifecta history[edit]

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. Between 1992 and 2023, South Carolina was under the following types of trifecta control:

* Democratic trifecta: None
* Republican trifecta: 2003-2023
* Divided government: 1992-2002

South Carolina Party Control: 1992-2026
No Democratic trifectas • Twenty-four 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  | 26

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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 | 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 | 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 | R

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ Follow the Money, "South Carolina 2008 Candidates," accessed July 31, 2013
2. ↑ Follow the Money, "South Carolina 2004 Candidates," accessed July 31, 2013
3. ↑ Follow the Money, "South Carolina 2000 Candidates," accessed July 31, 2013

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