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| Elections in South Carolina |
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The 2004 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 2, 2004. Longtime incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Fritz Hollings retired, and Republican U.S. Representative Jim DeMint won the open seat. DeMint was the first Republican to hold this Senate seat since 1879, and the first Republican to ever be popularly elected to the seat.
South Carolina's status as a Republican stronghold led observers to speculate that Hollings retiring would lead to his seat being picked up by a Republican. [1] Inez Tenenbaum, the South Carolina Superintendent of Education, would win the primary by a wide margin following the decision of many state Democrats to forgo a candidacy.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Inez Tenenbaum | 126,720 | 75.5% | |
| Democratic | Ben Frasier | 41,070 | 24.5% | |
The Senate election two years earlier in 2002 did not have a primary election because the South Carolina Republicans were more preoccupied with the gubernatorial contest, despite having the first open senate seat in 40 years. The retirement of Democratic Senator Fritz Hollings gave the Republicans an opportunity to pick up the seat and with no other interesting positions up for election in 2004, a crowded field developed in the Republican primary. Furthermore, the Republicans were motivated by having President Bush at the top of the ticket enabling them to ride his coattails to victory.
Former Governor David Beasley, from the Pee Dee, entered the race and quickly emerged as the frontrunner because of his support from the evangelical voters. However, during his term as governor from 1995 to 1999 he had greatly angered the electorate by proposing to remove the Confederate Naval Jack from the dome of the statehouse and by being against the adoption of a state lottery to provide for college scholarships. Both positions led to the loss of his re-election in 1998 and the issues continued to trouble him in the Senate race.
The battle for second place in the primary was between Upstate congressman, Jim DeMint, and Charleston developer Thomas Ravenel. DeMint was able to squeak out a second-place finish because Charlie Condon, a former Attorney General of South Carolina, split the Lowcountry vote with Ravenel thus providing DeMint the margin he needed. In addition, while many voters were attracted to the Ravenel campaign and felt that he had a future in politics, they believed that he should set his sights on a less high-profile office first before trying to become senator. Resigned to defeat, Ravenel endorsed DeMint in the runoff election.
In the runoff election on June 22, 2004, DeMint scored a surprising victory over Beasley. Ravenel's endorsement of DeMint proved crucial as the Lowcountry counties heavily went for the Representative from the Upstate. Also, Beasley had burnt too many bridges while governor and was unable to increase his share of the vote in the runoff.
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | Jim DeMint | David Beasley | Thomas Ravenel | Charlie Condon | Mark McBride | Bob Peeler | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA | June 18–20, 2004 | 499 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 54% | 44% | 2% | ||||
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | June 10–14, 2004 | 700 (LV) | 46% | 42% | 12% | |||||
| SurveyUSA | June 12–14, 2004 | 527 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 47% | 48% | 5% | ||||
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | June 7, 2004 | 42% | 48% | 10% | ||||||
| Richard Quinn & Associates (R) (p. 2) | June 9–10, 2004 | 300 (LV) | ± 5.8% | 38% | 47% | 15% | ||||
| SurveyUSA | June 4–6, 2004 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 20% | 38% | 23% | 12% | 7% | ||
| SurveyUSA | May 22–24, 2004 | 421 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 21% | 43% | 17% | 16% | 3% | ||
| Richard Quinn & Associates (R) | May 11, 2004 | 467 (LV) | ± 4.7% | 18% | 40% | 11% | 9% | 22% | ||
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | May 2004 | 33% | 54% | 10% | ||||||
| SurveyUSA (p. 2) | April 26–28, 2004 | 427 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 27% | 38% | 19% | 16% | |||
| Richard Quinn & Associates (R) | February 4–5, 2004 | 716 (LV) | ± 3.8% | 13% | 41% | 9% | 15% | 2% | 20% | |
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | January 2004 | 550 (LV) | ± 3.4% | 16% | 37% | 10% | 19% | 2% | 16% | |
| Richard Quinn & Associates (R) (p. 2) | October 17–20, 2003 | ± 3.8% | 8% | 24% | 8% | 16% | 44% | |||
| 24% | 44% | 32% | ||||||||
| 22% | 33% | 45% | ||||||||
| 44% | 28% | 28% | ||||||||
| Basswood Research (R) | April 29, 2003 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 19% | 4% | 27% | 4% | 46% |
| Republican Primary | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| David Beasley | 107,847 | 36.6% |
| Jim DeMint | 77,567 | 26.3% |
| Thomas Ravenel | 73,167 | 24.8% |
| Charlie Condon | 27,694 | 9.4% |
| Mark McBride | 6,479 | 2.2% |
| Orly Benny Davis | 1,915 | 0.7% |
| Republican Primary Runoff | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Jim DeMint | 154,644 | 59.2% | +32.9% |
| David Beasley | 106,480 | 40.8% | +4.2% |
DeMint entered the general election campaign severely weakened from the primary fight, having spent most of his campaign funds. He stressed to the voters that he would follow conservative principles and provide an important Republican vote in the closely divided Senate. Democrats fared poorly in statewide elections in South Carolina, so Tenenbaum tried to make the race about issues rather than party identification.
Tenenbaum attacked DeMint's support of the FairTax proposal because it would increase the sales tax by 23%. The election victory by DeMint merely cemented South Carolina's shift to the Republican column as the best candidate the Democrats could offer was soundly defeated by the typical 10-point margin.
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Sabato's Crystal Ball [11] | Likely R (flip) | November 1, 2004 |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | Jim DeMint (R) | Inez Tenenbaum (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA | October 29–31, 2004 | 635 (LV) | ± 4% | 52% | 41% | 7% |
| McLaughlin & Associates | October 26–28, 2004 | 400 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 48% | 40% | 12% |
| SurveyUSA | October 22–24, 2004 | 564 (LV) | ± 4.2% | 52% | 39% | 9% |
| Mason-Dixon | October 19–20, 2004 | 625 (LV) | ± 4% | 47% | 43% | 10% |
| SurveyUSA | October 10–12, 2004 | 563 (LV) | ± 4.2% | 46% | 43% | 11% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 6, 2004 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 49% | 43% | 8% |
| McLaughlin & Associates (R) | September 29–30, 2004 | 400 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 46% | 36% | 18% |
| Mason-Dixon | September 27–29, 2004 | 625 (RV) | ± 4% | 50% | 38% | 12% |
| Global Strategy Group (D) | September 27–29, 2004 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 43% | 46% | 11% |
| SurveyUSA | September 19–21, 2004 | 684 (LV) | ± 3.8% | 51% | 39% | 10% |
| Global Strategy Group (D) | September 7–9, 2004 | 600 (LV) | ± 4% | 44% | 41% | 15% |
| SurveyUSA | August 16–18, 2004 | 727 (LV) | ± 3.7% | 52% | 39% | 9% |
| SurveyUSA | July 10–12, 2004 | 702 (LV) | ± 3.8% | 48% | 41% | 11% |
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | June 28–29, 2004 | 600 (LV) | ± 4% | 47% | 41% | 12% |
| Hickman Research (D) | March 14–18, 2004 | 700 (LV) | ± 3.7% | 33% | 48% | 19% |
| Hickman Research (D) | Jul 28–Aug 3, 2003 | 628 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 33% | 48% | 19% |
| DSCC (D) (p. 2) | May 2003 | ± % | 33% | 45% | 22% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | David Beasley (R) | Inez Tenenbaum (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hickman Research (D) | March 14–18, 2004 | 700 (LV) | ± 3.7% | 41% | 46% | 13% |
| McLaughlin & Associates (R) (p. 2) | February 2004 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 48% | 32% | 20% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | Charlie Condon (R) | Inez Tenenbaum (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hickman Research (D) | March 14–18, 2004 | 700 (LV) | ± 3.7% | 40% | 47% | 13% |
| Hickman Research (D) | Jul 28–Aug 3, 2003 | 628 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 36% | 48% | 16% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | Thomas Ravenel (R) | Inez Tenenbaum (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hickman Research (D) | Jul 28–Aug 3, 2003 | 628 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 29% | 49% | 22% |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size [10] | Margin of error | Jim DeMint (R) | Fritz Hollings (D) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DSCC (D) (p. 2) | May 2003 | ± % | 38% | 43% | 19% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim DeMint• | 857,167 | 53.67% | +8.00% | |
| Democratic | Inez Tenenbaum | 704,384 | 44.10% | −8.60% | |
| Constitution | Patrick Tyndall | 13,464 | 0.84% | N/A | |
| Libertarian | Rebekah E. Sutherland | 10,678 | 0.67% | −0.92% | |
| United Citizens Party | Tee Ferguson | 5,859 | 0.37% | N/A | |
| Green | Efia Nwangaza* | 4,245 | 0.27% | N/A | |
| No party | Write-Ins | 1,286 | 0.08% | N/A | |
| Majority | 152,783 | 9.57% | +2.54% | ||
| Turnout | 1,597,221 | 69.0% | +16.2% | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | |||||
| *Nwangaza ran under the Independence Party in Aiken and Calhoun counties; her totals are combined. | |||||
The 2004 United States Senate elections were held on November 2, 2004, with all Class 3 Senate seats being contested. They coincided with the re-election of George W. Bush as president and the United States House elections, as well as many state and local elections. Senators who were elected in 1998, known as Senate Class 3, were seeking re-election or retiring in 2004.
James Warren DeMint is an American businessman, author, and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from South Carolina and as president of The Heritage Foundation. DeMint is a member of the Republican Party and a leading figure in the Tea Party movement; he is also the founder of the Senate Conservatives Fund.
Inez Moore Tenenbaum is an American lawyer and politician who served as South Carolina Superintendent of Education and as chairperson of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. In 2016, she joined a law firm. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
Robert Durden Inglis Sr. is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 4th congressional district from 1993 to 1999 and again from 2005 to 2011. He is a moderate member of the Republican Party. Inglis was unseated in the Republican primary runoff in 2010 by a landslide.
The 2006 South Carolina gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Governor Mark Sanford won re-election against Democratic State Senator Tommy Moore, becoming only the third Republican governor in South Carolina to win a second term. Sanford started the campaign with a double-digit edge over Moore and he maintained that lead to election day. During the course of the campaign, Sanford's approval rating averaged in the mid-fifties. In Sanford's re-election victory, he also garnered 22% of the African American vote.
The 2006 South Carolina State Elections took place on November 7, 2006, and included the gubernatorial election. All nine popularly elected constitutional officers were up for reelection, and all races except the Attorney General's were contested. The entire South Carolina House of Representatives, one state senator and six state circuit solicitors were also up for election. Several constitutional amendments were also on the ballot.
South Carolina's 1st congressional district is a coastal congressional district in South Carolina, represented by Republican Nancy Mace since January 3, 2021. She succeeded Democrat Joe Cunningham, having defeated him in the 2020 election. Cunningham was the first Democrat to represent the district since the 1980s.
The South Carolina Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina.
The 2002 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002 to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Mark Sanford, the Republican nominee, defeated incumbent Democratic Governor Jim Hodges to become the 115th governor of South Carolina. Hodges became only the third incumbent governor and the first Democratic governor in South Carolina history to lose reelection.
The 2010 South Carolina gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Republican Governor Mark Sanford was term limited and unable to seek re-election. Primary elections took place on June 8, 2010, and a runoff election, as was necessary on the Republican side, was held two weeks later on June 22.
The 1998 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held November 3, 1998. Incumbent Senator Fritz Hollings won reelection to his seventh term. As of 2023, this is the last time that a Democrat has won a U.S. Senate election in South Carolina. This is also the last time the Democratic nominee for this Senate seat was a white man, as in future elections Democrats would either nominate a woman and/or a person of color.
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 3, 1992, to elect the six U.S. representatives from the state of South Carolina, one from each of the state's six congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 1992 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections.
The 1978 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 7, 1978, to select the U.S. senator from the state of South Carolina. Popular incumbent Republican Senator Strom Thurmond defeated Democratic challenger Charles D. Ravenel.
The 1971 South Carolina 1st congressional district special election was held on April 27, 1971 to select a Representative for the 1st congressional district to serve out the remainder of the term for the 92nd Congress. The special election resulted from the death of longtime Representative L. Mendel Rivers on December 28, 1970. Mendel Jackson Davis, a former aide to Rivers and his godson, won a surprising victory in the Democratic primary and went on to win the general election against Republican challenger James B. Edwards.
The 2010 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Jim DeMint won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic nominee Alvin Greene. However, DeMint did not serve out the full term to which he was elected; he resigned in 2013 to become president of The Heritage Foundation.
Benjamin Frasier Jr. is a perennial candidate for political office in South Carolina, having run for Congress over fifteen times since 1972. He actually became the Democratic Party nominee for the November 2010 election, "surpris[ing] observers" by beating retired Air Force Reserve Colonel Robert Burton in South Carolina's 1st congressional district Democratic Party primary, with 56 percent of the vote to Burton's 44 percent.
The 2014 United States Senate election in South Carolina took place on November 4, 2014, concurrently with a special election for South Carolina's other Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
The 2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina took place on November 4, 2014, concurrently with the regular election for the other South Carolina Senate seat. The special-election Senate seat was formerly held by Republican Jim DeMint, who resigned on January 2, 2013, to become president of The Heritage Foundation.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of South Carolina on November 4, 2014. All of South Carolina's executive officers were up for election as well as both United States Senate seats, and all of South Carolina's seven seats in the United States House of Representatives.
The 2022 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of South Carolina. Incumbent senator Tim Scott won reelection to a second full term, defeating state representative Krystle Matthews.
