COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – Longtime state Rep. James Smith won the Democratic nomination in South Carolina’s gubernatorial race on Tuesday, after leading the pack in fundraising, endorsements and name recognition.
Smith defeated Charleston consultant Phil Noble and Florence attorney Marguerite Willis in the primary. Smith has served in the state Legislature for 22 years. He was a JAG officer in the US Army Reserve and South Carolina Army National Guard but resigned his commission after the Sept. 11 attacks to enlist in the infantry.
Smith has selected fellow state Rep. Mandy Powers Norrell as his running mate.
Democratic candidate for South Carolina governor James Smith kissed his wife, Kit Smith after voting in the South Carolina Primary at AC Moore Elementary School, in Columbia, S.C., Tuesday, June 12, 2018. (Tracy Glantz /The State via AP)
It’s not yet known who Smith will face in the November general election. Gov. Henry McMaster is one of five Republicans seeking their party’s nomination for governor.
The GOP vote is a test of the heft of Trump’s endorsement in South Carolina, where McMaster became governor last year following Nikki Haley’s departure to serve as U.N. ambassador. As lieutenant governor, McMaster was the nation’s first statewide elected official to back Trump ahead of South Carolina’s early presidential primary.
McMaster was unsuccessful in his 2010 gubernatorial bid, losing a four-way primary to Haley.
Among his opponents are businessman John Warren – who only entered the race in February, served as a Marine and has largely self-funded his campaign, contributing more than $3 million toward his coffers – and former state public health chief Catherine Templeton.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster gives a thumbs up as he arrives to vote in the South Carolina Primary, Tuesday, June 12, 2018 at the Lourie Center in Columbia, S.C. Arriving with McMaster is his daughter, Mary Rogers, left, and wife, Peggy, second from left. (Kevin Martin//The State via AP)
Republican candidate for governor of South Carolina Catherine Templeton waits to vote at her Mount Pleasant, S.C., precinct Tuesday, June 12, 2018. (Brad Nettles/The Post And Courier via AP)
Republican candidate for governor of South Carolina Catherine Templeton, left, and her husband Morgan talk to voters while waiting in line to cast their ballots in state’s primary elections, at their Mount Pleasant, S.C., precinct Tuesday, June 12, 2018. (Brad Nettles/The Post And Courier via AP)
Republican Candidate for Governor, John Warren, and his wife, Courtney, leave their polling place in Greenville, S.C., after voting in the primary elections on Tuesday, June 12, 2018. (Lauren Petracca /The Greenville News via AP)
John Warren, Republican candidate for South Carolina governor, puts an “I Voted” sticker on his two-year-old son, Stevie, after voting in the primary elections in Greenville, S.C. on Tuesday, June 12, 2018. (Lauren Petracca /The Greenville News via AP)
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