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| Elections in South Carolina |
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The 1776 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on 26 March 1776 in order to elect the first President of South Carolina. The office would be renamed to Governor in 1778. Candidate and former Attorney General of South Carolina John Rutledge was elected by the South Carolina General Assembly as he ran unopposed. The exact number of votes cast in this election is unknown. [1]
On election day, 26 March 1776, candidate John Rutledge was elected by the South Carolina General Assembly. Rutledge was sworn in as the 1st President of South Carolina on 4 July 1776. [2]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | John Rutledge | Unknown | 100.00% | |
| Total votes | Unknown | 100.00% | ||
| Nonpartisan hold | ||||
Edward Rutledge was an American Founding Father and politician who signed the Continental Association and was the youngest signatory of the Declaration of Independence. He later served as the 39th governor of South Carolina.
William Moultrie was an American slaveowning planter and politician who became a general in the American Revolutionary War. As colonel leading a state militia, in 1776 he prevented the British from taking Charleston, and Fort Moultrie was named in his honor.
The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the ex officio commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making yearly "State of the State" addresses to the South Carolina General Assembly, submitting an executive budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced.
Christopher Gadsden was an American politician who was the principal leader of the South Carolina Patriot movement during the American Revolution. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress, a brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, a merchant, and the designer of the Gadsden flag. He is a signatory to the Continental Association.
The North Carolina General Assembly is the bicameral legislature of the state government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets in the North Carolina State Legislative Building in Raleigh.
The Territory South of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Southwest Territory or the old Southwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1790, until June 1, 1796, when it was admitted to the United States as the State of Tennessee. The Southwest Territory was created by the Southwest Ordinance which was similar to the previous two ordinances passed by the Confederation Congress for the parallel establishment and development of the old Northwest Territory of 1786-1803. It pertained to lands situated north of the Ohio River, around the Great Lakes and extending west to the Mississippi River. The lands of the Territory were taken from western areas beyond the mountains of the Commonwealth of Virginia Western lands were also ceded by the state of North Carolina from lands of the Washington District that had been already ceded to the U.S. federal government by North Carolina.
The lieutenant governor of North Carolina is the second-highest elected official in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is the only elected official to have powers in both the legislative and executive branches of state government. A member of the North Carolina Council of State, the lieutenant governor serves a four-year term with a two consecutive term limit. The current lieutenant governor is Rachel Hunt, a Democrat, who has held the office since 2025. The Constitution of North Carolina designates the lieutenant governor the ex officio president of the State Senate and a member of the State Board of Education. They are also required to serve as acting governor of the state in the event of the governor's absence, and assume the governorship in the event it becomes vacant.
Benjamin Williams was the 11th and 14th Governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina, from 1799 to 1802 and from 1807 to 1808. He was the first of two North Carolina Governors since the American Revolution to serve nonconsecutive terms.
Rawlins Lowndes was an American lawyer, planter and politician who became involved in the patriot cause after his election to South Carolina's legislature, although he opposed independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Lowndes served as president/governor of South Carolina during the American Revolutionary War, and after the war opposed his state's ratification of the Constitution of the United States because it would restrict the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Lowndes also served as a state legislator and mayor of Charleston before his death. Two of his sons, Thomas and William Lowndes, would serve in the U.S. Congress.
The attorney general of North Carolina is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The attorney general is a constitutional officer responsible for representing state agencies in legal matters, supplying other state officials and prosecutors with legal advice, and leading the North Carolina Department of Justice. The incumbent attorney general, Jeff Jackson, assumed office on January 1, 2025. The position of attorney general dates back to North Carolina's colonial history. North Carolina's 1776 constitution established the office as an official appointed by the North Carolina General Assembly. The state's 1868 constitution made the attorney general an elected executive official with their duties prescribed by law. Since 1971, the officer has sat on the North Carolina Council of State.
The lieutenant governor of South Carolina is the second-in-command to the governor of South Carolina. Beyond the responsibility to act or serve as governor in the event of the office's vacancy, the duties of the lieutenant governor are chiefly ceremonial. The current lieutenant governor is Pamela Evette, who took office January 9, 2019.
John Rutledge Jr. was a United States representative from South Carolina. Born in Charles Town in the Province of South Carolina, he was a son of John Rutledge, who was President of South Carolina, Governor of South Carolina, a Continental Congressman, Philadelphia Convention Framer of the United States Constitution, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and a nephew of Edward Rutledge, another Continental Congressman from South Carolina. The younger John received private instruction and also attended school in Charleston and Philadelphia. He studied law with his father, was admitted to the bar about 1787 and practiced in Charleston; he also engaged as a planter. From 1794 to 1797, he was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1794 to the Fourth Congress, and was elected as a Federalist to the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Congresses, serving from March 4, 1797, to March 3, 1803. He was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the Thirteenth Congress, and commanded a company of the Twenty-eighth Regiment, South Carolina Militia, in 1799. In 1801, he was the Federalist nominee in a special election for the U.S. Senate, losing to Thomas Sumter. He was promoted to major and in 1804 succeeded to the command of the regiment and served as its commander in the War of 1812. He commanded the Seventh Brigade from 1816 until his death in Philadelphia.
John Rutledge Jr. was an American Founding Father, politician, and jurist who served as one of the original associate justices of the Supreme Court and the second chief justice of the United States. Additionally, he served as the first president of South Carolina and later as its first governor after the Declaration of Independence was signed.
John Mathews was a Founding Father of the United States and lawyer from Charleston, South Carolina. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1778 to 1781 where he endorsed the Articles of Confederation on behalf of South Carolina. On his return, he was elected the 33rd governor of South Carolina, serving a single term in 1782 and 1783.
The attorney general of South Carolina is the state's chief legal officer and prosecutor.
United States gubernatorial elections were held in 1800, in 11 states, concurrent with the House, Senate elections and presidential election.
The 1810 Connecticut gubernatorial election took place on April 9, 1810.
The 1779 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on 9 January 1779 in order to elect the Governor of South Carolina. Former Governor John Rutledge was elected by the South Carolina General Assembly as he ran unopposed. The exact number of votes cast in this election is unknown.
The 1798 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on 18 December 1798 in order to elect the Governor of South Carolina. Federalist candidate and former member of the South Carolina Senate Edward Rutledge was elected by the South Carolina General Assembly against fellow Federalist candidate and former Governor William Moultrie.
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