The Primary elections on June 11 were key races for members of the SC House and Senate that were on the ballot. In many cases, the winners of the Primaries will be the ones serving in the legislature come January. There will be several runoffs, especially for Senate seats, and razor-thin margins decided a few races. Here’s a recap of the SC House and Senate elections
SC House Races
SCFOR tracked thirty-seven (37) incumbent races in the June 11 Primary Elections for the SC House. This year, these races covered the whole gamut, with long-serving members, House leadership, and newly elected members facing challengers. Three incumbents lost their seats: Rep. Bill Sandifer (R-Oconee); Rep. Jay West (R-Anderson); and Rep. Jerry Carter (R-Pickens). A look at all incumbent races is illustrated below.
In addition, there were 15 open seats in the SC House due to retirements and newly drawn districts. Thirteen (13) of those seats had primary races, and an overview of the winners of the open seats can be viewed here.
SC Senate Races
SCFOR tracked thirteen (13) incumbent races for the SC Senate. In all, a total of three (3) incumbents lost their seats: Senator Penry Gustafson (R-Kershaw); Senator Dick Harpootlian (D-Richland), and Senator Sandy Senn (R-Charleston).
There were five (5) open seats in the SC Senate due to retirements and newly drawn districts. Some incumbents/candidates did not receive 50% of the vote, they will face runoffs on Tuesday, June 25. An overview of Senate races is illustrated below.
Senator Katrina Shealy will face Carlisle Kennedy in District 23 (Lexington). Shealy earned 40% of the vote. Kennedy came in second with 36.2% of the vote. The winner will not face opposition in November.
Rep. Jason Elliott will face Ben Carper in District 6 (Greenville). The winner will not face opposition in November. Elliott received 48.3% of the vote in Tuesday’s primary, and Carper came in second with 31.3%. This seat is currently held by Senator Dwight Loftis (R), who is retiring.
Former Senator Lee Bright will face Rep. Roger Nutt in a runoff for District 12 (Greenville & Spartanburg). Bright received 36.2% of the vote, Nutt came in second place with 23.2% of the vote. The winner will face Democrat Octavia Amaechi in November. This seat is currently held by Senator Scott Talley (R) who is retiring.
Rep. Ivory Thigpen and Overture Walker move to a runoff for District 22 (Richland). Thigpen received 42.9% of the vote, and Overture earned 40.3%. The winner will face Workers Party candidate Gary Votour in November. This seat is currently held by Senator Mia McLeod (I).
Mike Jones and Lindsay Agostini move to a runoff for the Republican nomination for District 35 (Kershaw, Lee Richland, Sumter). Jones earned 49.5% of the vote, while Agostini came in second with 30.3%. Democrats Jeffrey Graham and Austin Floyd also have a runoff. Graham earned 46.9% of the vote, while Floyd received 37.7%. The winners of the respective runoffs will move to the November General Election. This seat is currently held by Senator Thomas McElveen (D), who is retiring.
View All 2024 House & Senate Races
Based on unofficial results as published by the SC Election Commission. All photos sourced from the SC legislative website, legislative caucuses, campaign websites, and/or public social media pages. Some candidates did not have websites or social media pages for photos to be included in this report.