South Carolina state legislative special elections, 2019
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In 2019, four special elections were called to fill vacant seats in the South Carolina State Legislature. Click here to read more about the special elections.
Senate special elections called:
- District 6: March 26
House special elections called:
- District 14: April 23
- District 19: August 20
- District 84: October 1
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]
See sources: South Carolina Const. Art. III, § 25 and South Carolina Code Ann. § 7-13-190
About the legislature
The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, consists of the lower House of Representatives and the upper State Senate. The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the general election in 2018 and 2016. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).
South Carolina State Senate | |||
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Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
Democratic Party | 18 | 18 | |
Republican Party | 28 | 28 | |
Total | 46 | 46 |
South Carolina House of Representatives | |||
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Party | As of November 6, 2018 | After November 7, 2018 | |
Democratic Party | 44 | 44 | |
Republican Party | 80 | 80 | |
Total | 124 | 124 |
Special elections
Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:
March 26, 2019
South Carolina State Senate District 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A special election for South Carolina State Senate District 6 was called for March 26, 2019. A special primary election was held on January 22, 2019. Primary runoffs would have followed on February 5, if they had been necessary. The candidate filing deadline was December 8, 2018.[4] The seat became vacant following William Timmons' (R) resignation on November 9, 2018.[4] General electionSpecial general election for South Carolina State Senate District 6Dwight Loftis defeated Tina Belge in the special general election for South Carolina State Senate District 6 on March 26, 2019.
Democratic primary electionSpecial Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 6Tina Belge advanced from the special Democratic primary for South Carolina State Senate District 6 on January 22, 2019.
Republican primary electionSpecial Republican primary for South Carolina State Senate District 6Dwight Loftis defeated Amy Doyle and Jeffrey Stringer in the special Republican primary for South Carolina State Senate District 6 on January 22, 2019.
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April 23, 2019
South Carolina House of Representatives District 14 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A special election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14 was called for April 23, 2019. A primary was held on February 19, 2019. A primary runoff was scheduled for March 5, 2019, but it was not necessary. The candidate filing deadline was January 5, 2019.[5] The seat became vacant after Michael Pitts (R) resigned on January 3, 2019, for health reasons.[6] General electionSpecial general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14Stewart Jones defeated Garrett McDaniel in the special general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14 on April 23, 2019.
Democratic primary electionSpecial Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14Garrett McDaniel defeated Bobby Gregory Sr. in the special Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14 on February 19, 2019.
Republican primary electionSpecial Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14Stewart Jones defeated Michael Seymour, Scott Horne, and Grant Blair in the special Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 14 on February 19, 2019.
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August 20, 2019
South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A special election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 was called for August 20, 2019. A primary was held on June 18, 2019. The candidate filing deadline was April 27, 2019.[7] The seat became vacant after Dwight Loftis (R) was elected to represent District 6 of the South Carolina State Senate. General electionSpecial general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19Patrick Haddon defeated Carrie Counton in the special general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 on August 20, 2019.
Democratic primary electionSpecial Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19Carrie Counton advanced from the special Democratic primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 on June 18, 2019.
Republican primary electionSpecial Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19Patrick Haddon defeated Bill Addis in the special Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 19 on June 18, 2019.
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October 1, 2019
South Carolina House of Representatives District 84 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A special election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84 was called for October 1, 2019. A primary was held on July 30, 2019. A primary runoff was scheduled for August 13, 2019. The candidate filing deadline was June 15, 2019.[8][9] The seat became vacant after Ronnie Young (R) passed away on May 19, 2019.[10] See also: South Carolina state legislative special elections, 2019 General electionSpecial general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84Melissa Oremus won election in the special general election for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84 on October 1, 2019.
Republican primary runoff electionSpecial Republican primary runoff for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84Melissa Oremus defeated Alvin Padgett in the special Republican primary runoff for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84 on August 13, 2019.
Republican primary electionSpecial Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84The following candidates ran in the special Republican primary for South Carolina House of Representatives District 84 on July 30, 2019.
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Special elections throughout the country
In 2019, 77 state legislative special elections were held in 24 states. Between 2011 and 2018, an average of 77 special elections took place each year.
Breakdown of 2019 special elections
In 2019, special elections for state legislative positions were held for the following reasons:
- 47 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
- 21 due to a retirement
- 6 due to the death of the incumbent
- 1 due to a resignation related to criminal charges
- 2 due to an election being rerun
Impact of special elections on partisan composition
The partisan breakdown for the special elections was as follows:
- 39 Democratic seats
- 38 Republican seats
The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2019. 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. In elections between 2011 and 2018, either the Democratic Party or Republican Party saw an average net gain of four seats across the country. Between 2017 and 2018, Democrats had a net gain of 19 seats.
Note: This table reflects information for elections that were held and not the total number of vacant seats.
Partisan Change from Special Elections (2019) | |||
---|---|---|---|
Party | As of Special Election | After Special Election | |
Democratic Party | 39 | 36 | |
Republican Party | 38 | 40 | |
Independent | 0 | 1 | |
Total | 77 | 77 |
Flipped seats
In 2019, eight seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.
Seats flipped from D to R
- Minnesota State Senate District 11 (February 5)
- Connecticut State Senate District 6 (February 26)
- Connecticut House of Representatives District 99 (February 26)
- Kentucky State Senate District 31 (March 5)
- New Jersey State Senate District 1 (November 5)
Seats flipped from R to D
- Pennsylvania State Senate District 37 (April 2)
- Missouri House of Representatives District 99 (November 5)
Seats flipped from R to I
State profile
- See also: South Carolina and South Carolina elections, 2019
Partisan data
The information in this section was current as of May 7, 2019
Presidential voting pattern
- South Carolina voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Congressional delegation
- Following the 2018 elections, both U.S. senators from South Carolina were Republicans.
- Five of South Carolina's seven U.S. representatives were Republicans and two were Democrats.
State executives
- Republicans held nine of South Carolina's 14 state executive offices. The other five offices were nonpartisan.
- South Carolina's governor was Republican Henry McMaster.
State legislature
- Republicans controlled the South Carolina State Senate with a 27-19 majority.
- Republicans controlled the South Carolina House of Representatives with a 79-44 majority.
South Carolina Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas • Twenty-three 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 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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 |
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 |
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 |
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Demographic data for South Carolina | ||
---|---|---|
South Carolina | U.S. | |
Total population: | 4,894,834 | 316,515,021 |
Land area (sq mi): | 30,061 | 3,531,905 |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White: | 67.2% | 73.6% |
Black/African American: | 27.5% | 12.6% |
Asian: | 1.4% | 5.1% |
Native American: | 0.3% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Two or more: | 2% | 3% |
Hispanic/Latino: | 5.3% | 17.1% |
Education | ||
High school graduation rate: | 85.6% | 86.7% |
College graduation rate: | 25.8% | 29.8% |
Income | ||
Median household income: | $45,483 | $53,889 |
Persons below poverty level: | 22% | 11.3% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in South Carolina. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. |
See also
- State legislative special elections, 2019
- State legislative special elections, 2018
- State legislative special elections, 2017
- State legislative special elections, 2016
- South Carolina State Legislature
Footnotes
- ↑ South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Code," accessed February 17, 2021 (Statute 7-13-190 (A)-(B))
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Code," accessed February 17, 2021 (Statute 7-13-190 (B))
- ↑ South Carolina State Legislature, "South Carolina Constitution," accessed February 17, 2021 (Article 3, Section 25)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 FITSNews, "Special Election Set For Greenville SC Senate Seat," November 12, 2018
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "State House of Representatives District 14 Special Election," accessed January 8, 2019
- ↑ WSPA.com, "Upstate lawmaker announces retirement," December 10, 2018
- ↑ South Carolina State Election Commission, "State House of Representatives District 19 Special Election," accessed June 20, 2019
- ↑ Aiken Standard, "Special election to decide Rep. Ronnie Young's successor set for Oct. 1," May 27, 2019
- ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "10/1/2019 State House District 84 Special Election," accessed June 17, 2019
- ↑ The State, "‘A quiet leader’: Longtime public servant, SC Rep. Ronnie Young dies at 71," May 19, 2019
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