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United States Senate election in South Carolina, 2016
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Presidential • U.S. Senate • U.S. House • State Senate • State House • Local judges • State ballot measures • School boards • Candidate ballot access |
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November 8, 2016 |
June 14, 2016 |
Tim Scott  |
Tim Scott |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe R[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe R[3] |
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Voters in South Carolina elected one member to the U.S. Senate in the election on November 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated South Carolina's U.S. Senate race as safely Republican. Incumbent Tim Scott (R) defeated Thomas Dixon (D), Bill Bledsoe (Libertarian/Constitution), and Rebel Scarborough (American) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent on June 14, 2016. Scarborough defeated Jim Hinkle at convention.[4]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. South Carolina utilizes an open primary system, in which registered voters do not have to be members of a party to vote in that party's primary. Voters must take an oath affirming that they have not voted in another party's primary.[5][6]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Incumbent: The election filled the Class 3 Senate seat held by Tim Scott (R). He was first appointed to the seat in January 2013.[7] He was elected in 2014 in a special election.
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Tim Scott Incumbent |
60.6% | 1,241,609 | |
| Democratic | Thomas Dixon | 36.9% | 757,022 | |
| Libertarian | Bill Bledsoe | 1.8% | 37,482 | |
| American | Rebel Scarborough | 0.6% | 11,923 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0.1% | 1,857 | |
| Total Votes | 2,049,893 | |||
| Source: South Carolina Secretary of State | ||||
Candidates
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General election candidates: Tim Scott  Thomas Dixon Bill Bledsoe Rebel Scarborough Scott Hodge (Write-in) |
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Primary candidates:[8] |
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Democratic |
Republican |
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Third Party/Other Jim Hinkle (American)[9] Rebel Scarborough (American)[9] |
Election history
2014
Tim Scott was elected to the U.S. Senate in a special election held November 4, 2014.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Tim Scott Incumbent |
61.1% | 757,215 | |
| Democratic | Joyce Dickerson | 37.1% | 459,583 | |
| American Party of South Carolina | Jill Bossi | 1.7% | 21,652 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0% | 532 | |
| Total Votes | 1,238,982 | |||
| Source: South Carolina State Election Commission | ||||
Lindsey Graham won re-election to the U.S. Senate on November 4, 2014.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lindsey Graham Incumbent |
55.3% | 672,941 | |
| Democratic | Brad Hutto | 37.6% | 456,726 | |
| Libertarian | Victor Kocher | 2.8% | 33,839 | |
| Independent | Thomas Ravenel | 3.9% | 47,588 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0.4% | 4,774 | |
| Total Votes | 1,215,868 | |||
| Source: South Carolina State Election Commission | ||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: South Carolina elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in South Carolina in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| March 16, 2016 | Ballot access | Filing period opens for primary candidates | |
| March 30, 2016 | Ballot access | Filing period closes for primary candidates | |
| April 10, 2016 | Campaign finance | Quarterly campaign finance report due | |
| June 14, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| July 10, 2016 | Campaign finance | Quarterly campaign finance report due | |
| July 15, 2016 | Ballot access | Filing deadline for independent candidates | |
| October 10, 2016 | Campaign finance | Quarterly campaign finance report due | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| Sources: South Carolina Election Commission, "2016 Election Calendar," accessed September 21, 2015 South Carolina State Ethics Commission, "2016 Calendar," accessed January 11, 2016 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 2016
- United States Senate elections, 2016
- Tim Scott
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 Senate Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 Senate," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "Senate Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ South Carolina Election Commission, "Candidate Listing for the 11/8/2016 Statewide General Election," accessed March 31, 2016
- ↑ NCSL,"State Primary Election Types," accessed September 24, 2024
- ↑ South Carolina Legislature,"South Carolina Code of Laws Unannotated § 7-9-10," accessed September 24, 2024
- ↑ USA Today, "South Carolina to get first black senator in Tim Scott," December 17, 2012
- ↑ Candidates are listed by party and alphabetically within each party.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 South Carolina Election Commission, "Candidate Listing for the 11/8/2016 Statewide General Election," accessed March 31, 2016
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
