South Carolina's 4th Congressional District election, 2018

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General election

General election for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of William Timmons
William Timmons (R)
 
59.6
 
145,321
Image of Brandon Brown
Brandon Brown (D)
 
36.6
 
89,182
Image of Guy Furay
Guy Furay (American Party)
 
3.8
 
9,203
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
244

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 243,950
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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South Carolina's 4th Congressional District
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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:
Trey Gowdy (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in South Carolina
Race ratings
Cook Partisan Voter Index (2018): R+15
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
South Carolina's 4th Congressional District
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

All U.S. congressional districts, including the 4th Congressional District of South Carolina, held elections in 2018.

State Sen. William Timmons (R) faced consultant Brandon Brown (D) in the November general election. Timmons defeated former state Sen. Lee Bright (R) in the June 26 runoff election to win the Republican nomination while Brown defeated Doris Lee Turner in the Democratic runoff.

Heading into the election the incumbent was Trey Gowdy (R), who was first elected in 2010. On January 31, 2018, Gowdy announced that he would not seek re-election. He said, "There is a time to come and a time to go. This is the right time, for me, to leave politics and return to the justice system."[1]

The 4th District is located in upstate South Carolina, bordering North Carolina. It includes portions of Greenville and Spartanburg counties.[2]





Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

William Timmons defeated Brandon Brown and Guy Furay in the general election for U.S. House South Carolina District 4 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of William Timmons
William Timmons (R)
 
59.6
 
145,321
Image of Brandon Brown
Brandon Brown (D)
 
36.6
 
89,182
Image of Guy Furay
Guy Furay (American Party)
 
3.8
 
9,203
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
244

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 243,950
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

Brandon Brown defeated Lee Turner in the Democratic primary runoff for U.S. House South Carolina District 4 on June 26, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Brandon Brown
Brandon Brown
 
62.1
 
7,097
Image of Lee Turner
Lee Turner
 
37.9
 
4,340

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 11,437
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary runoff election

Republican primary runoff for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

William Timmons defeated Lee Bright in the Republican primary runoff for U.S. House South Carolina District 4 on June 26, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of William Timmons
William Timmons
 
54.3
 
37,096
Image of Lee Bright
Lee Bright
 
45.7
 
31,236

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 68,332
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

Lee Turner and Brandon Brown advanced to a runoff. They defeated Eric Graben, Will Morin III, and J.T. Davis in the Democratic primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 4 on June 12, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Lee Turner
Lee Turner
 
29.5
 
7,070
✔
Image of Brandon Brown
Brandon Brown
 
28.5
 
6,833
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
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Eric Graben
 
25.7
 
6,174
Image of Will Morin III
Will Morin III Candidate Connection
 
9.1
 
2,192
Image of J.T. Davis
J.T. Davis
 
7.2
 
1,733

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 24,002
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 4

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House South Carolina District 4 on June 12, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Lee Bright
Lee Bright
 
25.0
 
16,742
✔
Image of William Timmons
William Timmons
 
19.2
 
12,885
Image of Dan Hamilton
Dan Hamilton
 
18.6
 
12,494
Image of Josh Kimbrell
Josh Kimbrell
 
11.1
 
7,465
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
James Epley
 
8.0
 
5,386
Image of Stephen Brown
Stephen Brown
 
7.6
 
5,078
Image of Shannon Pierce
Shannon Pierce
 
3.6
 
2,442
Image of Mark Burns
Mark Burns
 
2.5
 
1,662
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
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Claude Schmid
 
2.1
 
1,415
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Dan Albert
 
0.8
 
510
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
John Marshall Mosser
 
0.7
 
457
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Justin David Sanders
 
0.5
 
354
Image of Barry Bell
Barry Bell
 
0.3
 
200

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 67,090
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

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+15, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 15 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made South Carolina's 4th Congressional District the 83rd most Republican nationally.[3]

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 1.01. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.01 points toward that party.[4]

Campaign contributions

The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Brandon Brown Democratic Party $68,547 $72,311 $194 As of November 26, 2018
William Timmons Republican Party $1,827,157 $1,814,018 $13,140 As of December 31, 2018
Guy Furay American Party $70,930 $71,087 $-20,442 As of December 31, 2018

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2018. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.


District history

2016

See also: South Carolina's 4th Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Trey Gowdy (R) defeated Chris Fedalei (D) and Michael Chandler (Constitution Party) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent.[5]

U.S. House, South Carolina District 4 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngTrey Gowdy Incumbent 67.2% 198,648
     Democratic Chris Fedalei 31% 91,676
     Constitution Michael Chandler 1.7% 5,103
     N/A Write-in 0.1% 243
Total Votes 295,670
Source: South Carolina Election Commission

2014

See also: South Carolina's 4th Congressional District elections, 2014

Incumbent Trey Gowdy won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. He defeated Libertarian Curtis McLaughlin in the general election.

U.S. House, South Carolina District 4 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngTrey Gowdy Incumbent 84.8% 126,452
     Libertarian Curtis McLaughlin 14.7% 21,969
     N/A Write-in 0.4% 628
Total Votes 149,049
Source: South Carolina Election Commission

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Five of 46 South Carolina counties—10.9 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Barnwell County, South Carolina 5.16% 5.33% 1.65%
Calhoun County, South Carolina 2.83% 4.31% 3.55%
Chester County, South Carolina 4.83% 10.58% 8.30%
Colleton County, South Carolina 8.49% 0.19% 0.53%
McCormick County, South Carolina 3.32% 3.60% 6.08%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won South Carolina with 54.9 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 40.7 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, South Carolina cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 53.3 percent of the time. In that same time frame, South Carolina supported Democratic candidates for president more often than Republican candidates, 53.3 to 43.3 percent. South Carolina favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in South Carolina. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns show the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns show the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[6][7]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 39 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 32.8 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 38 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 28.3 points. Clinton won one district controlled by a Republican heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 85 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 28.7 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 86 out of 124 state House districts in South Carolina with an average margin of victory of 30.1 points. Trump won seven districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

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

State executives

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

2018 elections

See also: South Carolina elections, 2018

South Carolina held elections for the following positions in 2018:

Demographics

Demographic data for South Carolina
 South CarolinaU.S.
Total population:4,894,834316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):30,0613,531,905
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).[8]

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 Republican Party Donald Trump 54.9% Democratic Party Hillary Clinton 40.7% 14.2%
2012 Republican Party Mitt Romney 54.6% Democratic Party Barack Obama 44.1% 10.5%
2008 Republican Party John McCain 53.9% Democratic Party Barack Obama 44.9% 9.0%
2004 Republican Party George W. Bush 58.0% Democratic Party John Kerry 40.9% 17.1%
2000 Republican Party George W. Bush 56.8% Democratic Party 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 Republican Party Tim Scott 60.6% Democratic Party Thomas Dixon 36.9% 23.7%
2014[9] Republican Party Tim Scott 61.1% Democratic Party Joyce Dickerson 37.1% 24.0%
2014 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 54.3% Democratic Party Brad Hutto 38.8% 15.5%
2010 Republican Party Jim DeMint 61.5% Democratic Party Alvin Greene 27.7% 33.8%
2008 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 57.5% Democratic Party Bob Conley 42.3% 15.2%
2004 Republican Party Jim DeMint 53.7% Democratic Party Inez Tenenbaum 44.1% 9.6%
2002 Republican Party Lindsey Graham 54.4% Democratic Party 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 Republican Party Nikki Haley 55.9% Democratic Party Vincent Sheheen 41.4% 14.5%
2010 Republican Party Nikki Haley 51.4% Democratic Party Vincent Sheheen 46.9% 4.5%
2006 Republican Party Mark Sanford 55.1% Democratic Party Kerry Healey 44.8% 10.3%
2002 Republican Party Mark Sanford 52.8% Democratic Party 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 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
2014 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
2012 Republican Party 6 85.7% Democratic Party 1 14.3% R+5
2010 Republican Party 5 83.3% Democratic Party 1 16.7% R+4
2008 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
2006 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
2004 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
2002 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 2 33.3% R+2
2000 Republican Party 4 66.7% Democratic Party 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

Footnotes

  1. ↑ The Hill, "Trey Gowdy announces retirement from Congress," January 30, 2018
  2. ↑ South Carolina Redistricting Map, "Map," accessed July 30, 2012
  3. ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
  4. ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
  5. ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "Candidate Listing for the 11/8/2016 Statewide General Election," accessed March 31, 2016
  6. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  7. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
  8. ↑ South Carolina Demographics, "South Carolina Cities by Population," accessed September 5, 2018
  9. ↑ Special election
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South Carolina's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Lindsey Graham (R)
Tim Scott (R)
Representatives
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