The South Carolina Democratic Party is the affiliate of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa * Botswana Democratic Party * Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *De ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sov ...

of South Carolina. It is headquartered in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

History

The Democratic Party thrived during the Second Party System between 1832 and the mid-1850s and was one of the causes of the collapse of the Whig Party. Between 1880 and 1948, South Carolina's Democratic Party dominated state politics. The

1948 presidential election The following elections occurred in the year 1948. Africa * 1948 Mauritian general election * 1948 South African general election * 1948 Southern Rhodesian general election Asia * 1948 North Korean parliamentary election * 1948 Republic of China ...

marked the winds of change as Strom Thurmond ran on behalf of the States' Rights Democratic Party ( Dixiecrats). He accumulated 71% of the votes cast in South Carolina that year. Nearly 100 years after the conclusion of the American Civil War (around 1949), the state was still preoccupied with racial tension, which muffled the debate about essentially all other issues. During this time, all politics revolved around the Democratic Party. Furthermore, a single faction typically dominated local politics. South Carolina was locked into the traditionalistic culture dominant throughout the South. Political change was often resisted by South Carolina's agrarian leaders. The agrarian leaders were middle-class farmers that were thought to maintain the status quo of the Democratic Party. In 1942, a party convention overwhelmingly voted to continue the all-white primary to prevent

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensla ...

influence. For much of South Carolina's history, the lower class was generally not allowed to vote.http://www.thestate.com/news/special-reports/state-125/article43721457.html A major shift began in

South Carolina politics South Carolina government and politics covers the three different branches of government, as well as the state constitution, law enforcement agencies, federal representation, state finances, and state taxes. South Carolina is a state in the Unit ...

with President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. It prohibits unequal application of voter registration requi ...

, with whites switching to the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

Current elected officials

The South Carolina Democratic Party currently control none of the statewide offices and holds minorities in both the South Carolina Senate and House of Representatives. Democrats hold one of the state's seven U.S. House seats.

Members of Congress

U.S. Senate

Republicans have controlled both of South Carolina's seats in the U.S. Senate since

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

. Fritz Hollings was the last Democrat to represent South Carolina in the U.S. Senate. First elected in the 1966 special election, Hollings opted to retire instead of seeking a seventh full term. Superintendent of Education Inez Tenenbaum ran as the Democratic nominee in the 2004 election and was subsequently defeated by Republican challenger

Jim DeMint James Warren DeMint (born September 2, 1951) is an American political advocate, businessman, author, and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from South Carolina and as president of the Heritage Foundation. DeMint is a member ...

. * None

U.S. House of Representatives

Out of the seven seats South Carolina is apportioned in the U.S. House of Representatives, one is held by Democrats:

Statewide offices

* None South Carolina has not elected any Democratic candidates to statewide office since 2006, when Jim Rex was elected as the Superintendent of Education. In 2010, Rex opted not to run for re-election, instead running unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for Governor. Former United States Deputy Secretary of Education

Frank Holleman Frank Sharp Holleman, III is an attorney and politician from South Carolina who was the Democratic Party's nominee for South Carolina Superintendent of Education in 2010 and is a former United States Deputy Secretary of Education. Holleman was ...

ran as the Democratic nominee and was subsequently defeated by Republican challenger Mick Zais.

State legislative leaders

* Senate Minority Leader: Brad Hutto *

House Minority Leader Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are ele ...

: Todd Rutherford

Officers and staff

As of July 2019, the state party officers were: * Chair: Trav Robertson, Jr. * 1st Vice Chairman: Lessie Price * 2nd Vice Chairman: Anthony B. Thompson Jr. * 3rd Vice Chairman: Jalen Elrod * Secretary: Joyce Rose-Harris * Treasurer: Kendra Dove State Party Staff: * Executive Director: Jay Parmley * Finance Director: Ellen Stankiewicz * Communications Coordinator: Grace Whaley * Political Director: Angela Clyburn

Members of the Democratic National Committee

Three members of the South Carolina Democratic Party also serve on the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well ...

. These are: * Bre Maxwell * Carol Fowler * Clay Middleton

References

External links

South Carolina Democratic Party

Democratic Party of South Carolina Records
at the University of South Carolina's South Carolina Political Collections
South Carolina Young Democrats

South Carolina High School Democrats
{{Authority control South Carolina