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Elections in South Carolina |
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The 1913 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on January 28, 1913, when the South Carolina legislature met and unanimously ratified the results of the August 27, 1912 primary. Incumbent Senator Ben Tillman was re-elected to a fourth term in office.
Prior to the ratification of the 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution, U.S. Senators were elected by the state legislature. However, the Democratic Party of South Carolina organized primary elections for the U.S. Senate beginning in 1896 and the General Assembly would confirm the choice of the Democratic voters. Tillman handily defeated former U.S. Representative W. Jasper Talbert and businessman Nathaniel B. Dial in the primary election.
Ben Tillman, a Senator since 1895, drew opposition in the Democratic primary for the first time during his career. He had long avoided any opposition because of his influence in the Democratic Party in the state, but by 1912 he had moderated his positions and lost the radical edge that had allowed him to build up a hard core following of support. The radicals in the state electorate had thrown their support to Coleman Livingston Blease in the gubernatorial election of 1910 and the Bleasites were determined to knock his chief opponent, Tillman, out of office. W. Jasper Talbert emerged as the candidate of the Bleasites and Nathaniel B. Dial entered the race as an alternative to the two. The voters of the state split their support between the Tillmanite and Bleasite factions as both Tillman and Blease won their respective primaries.
Democratic Primary | ||
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Candidate | Votes | % |
Benjamin Tillman (incumbent) | 73,148 | 52.7 |
W. Jasper Talbert | 37,141 | 26.8 |
Nathaniel B. Dial | 28,476 | 20.5 |
The General Assembly met and ratified the choice of the primary voters, re-electing Tillman for a third term.
The United States Senate elections of 1924 were elections for the United States Senate which coincided with the election of Republican President Calvin Coolidge to a full term. The strong economy and Coolidge's popularity helped Republican candidates increase their majority by four, although several interim appointments had worsened their numbers since the 1922 election; as a result, the party achieved a net gain of only one seat since the previous voting cycle.
Coleman Livingston Blease was a South Carolina politician of the Democratic Party and perennial candidate who served as Governor of South Carolina from 1911 to 1915, and as a United States Senator from 1925 to 1931. Blease was the political heir of Benjamin Tillman. He led a political revolution in South Carolina by building a political base of white textile mill workers from the state's upountry region. He was notorious for playing on the prejudices of poor whites to gain their votes and was an unrepentant white supremacist. Ultimately, despite his political strength, Blease failed to pass any significant legislation while governor.
In the United States Senate elections of 1912 and 1913, Democrats gained control of the Senate from the Republicans. Of the 32 seats up for election, 17 were won by Democrats, thereby gaining 4 seats from the Republicans. Two seats were unfilled by state legislators who failed to elect a new senator on time. They were the last Senate elections held before ratification of the 17th Amendment, which established direct elections for all seats in the Senate.
The 1912 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1912, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Governor Coleman Livingston Blease won the Democratic primary. As South Carolina was a utterly dominated by the Democratic Party, he faced no significant opposition in the general election.
The 1892 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 8, 1892 to select seven Representatives for two-year terms from the state of South Carolina. Two Democratic incumbents were re-elected, four open seats were won by the Democrats and the open seat in the 7th congressional district was picked up by the Republicans. The composition of the state delegation after the election was six Democrats and one Republican.
The 1914 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 3, 1914 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. It was the first election in South Carolina in which the voters were able to choose the candidate in the general election. Incumbent Democratic Senator Ellison D. Smith won the Democratic primary and defeated nominal opposition in the general election to win another six-year term.
The 1920 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 2, 1920 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Senator Ellison D. Smith won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win another six-year term.
The 1926 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 2, 1926, to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Senator Ellison D. Smith won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win another six-year term.
The 1932 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 8.
The 1930 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 4, 1930 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Senator Coleman Livingston Blease was defeated in the Democratic primary by James F. Byrnes. He was unopposed in the general election to win a six-year term.
The 1942 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 3, 1942 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Senator Burnet R. Maybank defeated Eugene S. Blease in the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win a six-year term.
The 1918 South Carolina United States Senate special election was held on November 5, 1918 simultaneously with the regular senate election to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina to serve the remainder of the term for the 65th Congress. The election resulted from the death of Senator Benjamin Tillman on July 3, 1918. William P. Pollock won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win the remaining four months of the term.
The 1918 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 5, 1918 simultaneously with the special senate election to select the U.S. Senator for a six-year term from the state of South Carolina. Nathaniel B. Dial won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win the six-year term to the Senate.
The 1902 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 4, 1902 to select seven Representatives for two-year terms from the state of South Carolina. Four incumbents were re-elected and the three open seats were retained by the Democrats. The composition of the state delegation after the election was solely Democratic.
The 1924 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 4, 1924 to select the U.S. Senator for a six-year term from the state of South Carolina. Coleman Livingston Blease won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win the six-year term to the Senate.
The 1897 South Carolina United States Senate election was a unanimous election of the Democratic nominee on January 26, 1897 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. The Democratic primary election was held on August 26, 1896 and September 9. Prior to the ratification of the 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution, U.S. Senators were elected by the state legislature and not through the direct election by the people of the state. However, the Democratic Party of South Carolina organized primary elections for the U.S. Senate beginning in 1896 and the General Assembly would confirm the choice of the Democratic voters. Conservative Democratic Joseph H. Earle won the Democratic primary and was elected by the General Assembly for a six-year term.
The 1903 South Carolina United States Senate election, held January 27, 1903 to select the U.S. senator from the state of South Carolina, was predetermined by the Democratic Party primary election held on August 26, 1902, and September 9. Democrats were so overwhelmingly dominant that their nomination was tantamount to the general election.
The 1909 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on January 26, 1909. Its outcome was determined by a Democratic Party primary election held on August 25 and September 8, 1908. Interim Senator Frank B. Gary, who had been elected to complete the unfinished term of the late Senator Asbury Latimer, did not run for re-election. Democrat Ellison D. Smith won the Democratic primary and was elected by the General Assembly for a six-year term.
Electoral history of James F. Byrnes, 49th United States Secretary of State (1945-1947), Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court (1941-1942), United States Senator from South Carolina (1931-1941), 104th Governor of South Carolina (1951-1955) and United States Representative from South Carolina (1911-1925)
The United States Senate elections of 1896 and 1897 were elections in which the Democratic Party lost seven seats in the United States Senate, mostly to smaller third parties.