COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Republicans are heading to primary elections Tuesday, looking to continue their decades-long dominance in statewide contests as they narrow down candidates for governor and U.S. Senate.
GOP candidates have emphasized their allegiance to President Donald Trump, who continues to enjoy strong support throughout the state even as his national standing has fluctuated during the ongoing Iran conflict. Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of the president’s closest congressional allies, secured Trump’s backing even before launching his reelection bid.
For the gubernatorial contest, Trump endorsed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette against multiple challengers, including U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace. Tuesday’s results will show whether the presidential endorsement gives Evette enough support to avoid a June 23 runoff election.
Democratic candidates face significant challenges in their quest to break a two-decade drought in statewide victories, with both their gubernatorial and Senate campaigns expected to be difficult battles.
The fight for Trump’s backing has dominated much of the Republican primary season more than any other campaign element.
Before receiving the president’s official support, Evette regularly showcased images and footage of her appearances with Trump in her promotional content. She earned backing from departing Gov. Henry McMaster, a longtime Trump supporter whose endorsement signaled the president’s likely choice.
Mace had also sought Trump’s endorsement, and he did support her 2024 congressional campaign despite her criticism of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot by his supporters.
Rep. Ralph Norman, who ranks among the House’s most conservative lawmakers and belongs to the Freedom Caucus, was a strong Trump supporter during his presidency. However, in the 2024 race, Norman campaigned for former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley rather than Trump.
Rom Reddy, a coastal business owner who has rejected campaign contributions and financed his own campaign, has promoted his political outsider status as a strength, making parallels between himself and Trump.
The state’s other major Tuesday contest features the Senate race, where Graham is running for the Republican nomination in his bid for a fifth term. As a close political advisor and frequent golf companion to the president, Graham has successfully fended off primary opponents in previous cycles. Several of this year’s potential challengers — including Project 2025 chief architect Paul Dans and former Lt. Gov. André Bauer — withdrew from the race months earlier.
Despite ups and downs in their relationship over time, Graham has maintained his alliance with Trump, who granted the senator’s long-sought goal of direct military action against Iran. Graham praised Trump’s strikes on nuclear facilities last year and recently noted he frequently discusses the continuing conflict with the president.
Graham’s primary opponents include Greenville businessman Mark Lynch, who argues Graham lacks sufficient conservative credentials for the state. Lynch describes himself as an “America First” candidate and campaigns as a Trump supporter, though the president has labeled him a “lunatic” and a “disaster for the Republican Party” on social media.
Democrats have been shut out of both the governor’s mansion and Senate seats in South Carolina for multiple decades.
McMaster won his 2022 reelection by almost 18 percentage points. Graham secured victory by 10 points in 2020, defeating Jaime Harrison in what became the state’s most costly campaign ever.
Some Democratic candidates are hoping to benefit from any Trump-related voter dissatisfaction this election cycle. In the gubernatorial primary, State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, viewed as an emerging party leader, faces multiple rivals including political newcomer Billy Webster, who founded a payday lending business and provided $2 million to his own campaign. Also running is attorney Mullins McLeod, who resisted party officials’ requests to end his candidacy after dashcam footage from his 2025 disorderly conduct arrest became public.
For the Senate Democratic nomination, Charleston physician Annie Andrews — who lost to Mace in 2022 — is competing against Brandon Brown, who owns a funeral home and previously ran for the House.
