South Carolina Republicans went to the polls Tuesday, June 10, and came away without a gubernatorial nominee — Trump-endorsed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette led the field with 29% of the vote, but neither she nor second-place Attorney General Alan Wilson, at 26%, cleared the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff. Decision Desk HQ called the two-way advance at 8:26 p.m. ET, setting up a June 23 rematch between the two.
Seven Republicans competed to replace Gov. Henry McMaster, including U.S. Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, State Senator Josh Kimbrell, and businessman Rom Reddy. Kimbrell, who had polled in the single digits throughout, dropped out earlier in the week. Those figures came with 41% of the vote counted.
President Trump weighed in hard for Evette. In a May 29 Truth Social post, he called her “an America First Patriot” who endorsed his 2024 presidential campaign from the start, adding: “Pam has my Complete and Total Endorsement — SHE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” The night before the primary, Trump held a TeleRally for both Evette and Sen. Lindsey Graham, who cruised to renomination — Decision Desk HQ called Graham’s race at 8:10 p.m. ET, roughly 16 minutes before the governor’s contest was settled.
Mace didn’t take the snub quietly. She told Fox News she believed Trump withheld his endorsement because of her vote in Congress to release the Epstein files. “If the price to pay for an endorsement was to not release those files, I would never pay it,” Mace said. Evette fired back, saying Mace “has crossed the President many times” during her time in Washington and “probably has a list of reasons” she didn’t make Trump’s cut.
Whoever wins the June 23 runoff will face a state growing faster than any other — the U.S. Census Bureau recorded a 1.5% population increase in South Carolina between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025. South Carolina’s Department of Employment noted in a report that the growth is driven largely by migration from other states, though it has slowed from its pandemic-era peak. The Cook Political Report currently rates the general election as solid Republican.
Reporting by The Daily Wire, published June 9, 2026. Read the original report.
