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South Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election (June 12, 2018 Republican primary)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 17
- Early voting: N/A
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Photo ID required
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2020 →
← 2016
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| South Carolina's 2nd Congressional District |
|---|
 |
| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: March 30, 2018 |
| Primary: June 12, 2018 Primary runoff: June 26, 2018 (if needed) General: November 6, 2018 Pre-election incumbent: Joe Wilson (Republican) |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voting in South Carolina |
| Race ratings |
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican Inside Elections: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018 |
| See also |
1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th South Carolina elections, 2018 U.S. Congress elections, 2018 U.S. Senate elections, 2018 U.S. House elections, 2018 |
A Republican Party primary election took place on June 12, 2018, in South Carolina's 2nd District to determine which Republican would run in the district's November 6, 2018, general election.
This page focuses on the Republican primary. For an overview of the election in general, click here.
Candidates and election results
Incumbent Joe Wilson advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 2 on June 12, 2018.
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 2
Candidate | ||
| ✔ |  | Joe Wilson |
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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District analysis
- See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
- See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores
The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+12, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 12 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made South Carolina's 2nd Congressional District the 114th most Republican nationally.[1]
FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.08. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.08 points toward that party.[2]
Campaign finance
The table below contains data from FEC Quarterly October 2017 reports. It includes only candidates who reported at least $10,000 in campaign contributions as of September 30, 2017.[3]
Republicans
State overview
Partisan control
This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in South Carolina heading into the 2018 elections.
Congressional delegation
- Following the 2016 elections, Republicans held both U.S. Senate seats in South Carolina.
- Republicans held six of seven U.S. House seats in South Carolina.
State executives
- As of September 2018, Republicans held eight of 16 state executive positions and the remaining eight positions were officially nonpartisan.
- The governor of South Carolina was Republican Henry McMaster. The state held an election for governor and lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018.
State legislature
- Republicans controlled both chambers of the South Carolina State Legislature. They had a 80-44 majority in the state House and a 27-19 majority in the state Senate.
Trifecta status
- South Carolina was a Republican trifecta, meaning that the Republican Party controlled the state government. Henry McMaster (R) served as governor, while Republicans controlled the state legislature.
2018 elections
- See also: South Carolina elections, 2018
South Carolina held elections for the following positions in 2018:
- Seven U.S. House seats
- Governor and lieutenant governor
- Eight lower state executive positions
- 124 state House seats
Demographics
| 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. | ||
As of July 2016, South Carolina's three largest cities were Charleston (pop. est. 135,000), Columbia (pop. est. 133,000), and North Charleston (pop. est. 111,000).[4]
State election history
This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in South Carolina from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the South Carolina Election Commission.
Historical elections
Presidential elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in South Carolina every year from 2000 to 2016.
| Election results (President of the United States), South Carolina 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 | Donald Trump |
54.9% |  Hillary Clinton |
40.7% | 14.2% |
| 2012 | Mitt Romney |
54.6% | Barack Obama |
44.1% | 10.5% |
| 2008 | John McCain |
53.9% | Barack Obama |
44.9% | 9.0% |
| 2004 | George W. Bush |
58.0% | John Kerry |
40.9% | 17.1% |
| 2000 | George W. Bush |
56.8% | Al Gore |
40.9% | 15.9% |
U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in South Carolina from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
| Election results (U.S. Senator), South Carolina 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 | Tim Scott |
60.6% | Thomas Dixon |
36.9% | 23.7% |
| 2014[5] | Tim Scott |
61.1% | Joyce Dickerson |
37.1% | 24.0% |
| 2014 | Lindsey Graham |
54.3% | Brad Hutto |
38.8% | 15.5% |
| 2010 | Jim DeMint |
61.5% | Alvin Greene |
27.7% | 33.8% |
| 2008 | Lindsey Graham |
57.5% | Bob Conley |
42.3% | 15.2% |
| 2004 | Jim DeMint |
53.7% | Inez Tenenbaum |
44.1% | 9.6% |
| 2002 | Lindsey Graham |
54.4% | Alex Sanders |
44.2% | 10.2% |
Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in South Carolina.
| Election results (Governor), South Carolina 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2014 | Nikki Haley |
55.9% | Vincent Sheheen |
41.4% | 14.5% |
| 2010 | Nikki Haley |
51.4% | Vincent Sheheen |
46.9% | 4.5% |
| 2006 | Mark Sanford |
55.1% | Kerry Healey |
44.8% | 10.3% |
| 2002 | Mark Sanford |
52.8% | Jim Hodges |
47.0% | 5.8% |
Congressional delegation, 2000-2016
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent South Carolina in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
| Congressional delegation, South Carolina 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
| 2016 | 6 |
85.7% | 1 |
14.3% | R+5 |
| 2014 | 6 |
85.7% | 1 |
14.3% | R+5 |
| 2012 | 6 |
85.7% | 1 |
14.3% | R+5 |
| 2010 | 5 |
83.3% | 1 |
16.7% | R+4 |
| 2008 | 4 |
66.7% | 2 |
33.3% | R+2 |
| 2006 | 4 |
66.7% | 2 |
33.3% | R+2 |
| 2004 | 4 |
66.7% | 2 |
33.3% | R+2 |
| 2002 | 4 |
66.7% | 2 |
33.3% | R+2 |
| 2000 | 4 |
66.7% | 2 |
33.3% | R+2 |
Trifectas, 1992-2017
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
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 |
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 2018
- United States House elections in South Carolina (June 12, 2018 Republican primaries)
- South Carolina's 2nd Congressional District election (June 12, 2018 Democratic primary)
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2018
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
- ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
- ↑ FEC, "Federal Election Commission," accessed November 5, 2017
- ↑ South Carolina Demographics, "South Carolina Cities by Population," accessed September 5, 2018
- ↑ Special election
