Surf Wiki
Save to docs
geography/united-states

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

South Carolina Senate

Upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly

South Carolina Senate

Upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly

FieldValue
background_color
nameSouth Carolina State Senate
legislatureSouth Carolina General Assembly
coa_picSeal of the South Carolina Senate.png
coa_captionSeal of the South Carolina Senate
session_roomSouth Carolina State Senate chamber IMG_4757.JPG
house_typeUpper House
term_limitsNone
new_sessionJanuary 9, 2024
leader1_typePresident
leader1Thomas Alexander (R)
election1December 6, 2021
leader3_typeMajority Leader
leader3Shane Massey (R)
election3April 6, 2016
leader4_typeMinority Leader
leader4Brad Hutto (D)
election4November 17, 2020
term_length4 years
authorityArticle III, South Carolina Constitution
salary$10,400/year + per diem
members46
structure1File:SC Senate 2024.svg
structure1_res250px
structure1_altComposition of the South Carolina Senate
*{{nowrap{{Color box#FF0000bordersilver}} Republican (34)}}
*{{nowrap{{Color box#0000FFbordersilver}} Democratic (12)}}
<!--*{{nowrap{{Color box#FFFFFFbordersilver}} Vacant (0)}}--
last_election1November 5, 2024
(46 seats)
next_election1November 7, 2028
(46 seats)
redistrictingLegislative Control
meeting_placeState Senate Chamber
South Carolina State House
Columbia, South Carolina
websiteSouth Carolina Senate
rulesRules of the Senate of South Carolina

Majority

Minority

(46 seats) (46 seats) South Carolina State House Columbia, South Carolina

A diagram of the Senate Chamber, 1917

The South Carolina State Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The lower house is the South Carolina House of Representatives. The Senate comprises 46 senators elected from single-member districts for four-year terms, coinciding with United States presidential elections.

The South Carolina Constitution of 1895 initially stipulated that each county would elect one senator for a four-year term, with elections staggered biennially. Following the 1964 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Reynolds v. Sims, the Senate underwent reapportionment. A temporary measure in 1966 established 27 districts with 50 members serving two-year terms. In 1967, the Senate was again reapportioned into 20 districts with 46 members, serving four-year terms. The number of districts was reduced to 16 in 1972, and by 1984, the state adopted a system of single-member districts.

The General Assembly convenes annually at the State Capitol Building in Columbia on the second Tuesday of January. Either the House or the Senate may, by a majority vote, declare a 30-day recess, or a longer recess with a two-thirds vote.

Composition

AffiliationParty (Shading indicates majority caucus)TotalRepublicanDemocraticIndVacantStart of 2023 Session46Start of 2025 Session46Latest voting share
Republican Party (United States)}}"Democratic Party (United States)}}"Independent}}"
301510
341200

Members of the South Carolina Senate

Except as noted, all senators were elected in November 2024 and terms began on January 14, 2025. All terms expire in January 2029.

DistrictRepresentativePartyResidenceFirst elected
1Thomas C. Alexander, presidentRepublicanWalhalla1994*
2Rex RiceRepublicanEasley2016
3Richard CashRepublicanPowdersville2017*
4Michael GambrellRepublicanHonea Path2016*
5Tom CorbinRepublicanTravelers Rest2012
6Jason ElliottRepublicanGreenville2024
7Karl B. AllenDemocraticGreenville2012
8Ross TurnerRepublicanGreenville2012
9Danny VerdinRepublicanLaurens2000
10Billy GarrettRepublicanGreenwood2020
11Josh KimbrellRepublicanInman2020
12Lee BrightRepublicanRoebuck2025*
13Shane MartinRepublicanSpartanburg2008
14Harvey S. Peeler Jr.RepublicanGaffney1980
15Wes ClimerRepublicanRock Hill2016
16Michael JohnsonRepublicanTega Cay2020
17Everett StubbsRepublicanRock Hill2024
18Ronnie CromerRepublicanProsperity2003*
19Tameika Isaac DevineDemocraticColumbia2024*
20Ed SuttonDemocraticNorth Charleston2024
21Darrell JacksonDemocraticHopkins1992
22Overture WalkerDemocraticColumbia2024
23Carlisle KennedyRepublicanLexington2024
24Tom Young Jr.RepublicanAiken2012
25A. Shane MasseyRepublicanEdgefield2007*
26Russell OttDemocraticColumbia2024
27Allen BlackmonRepublicanHeath Springs2024
28Greg HembreeRepublicanNorth Myrtle Beach2012
29JD ChaplinRepublicanDarlington2024
30Kent M. WilliamsDemocraticMarion2004
31Mike ReichenbachRepublicanFlorence2022*
32Ronnie A. SabbDemocraticGreeleyville2014*
33Luke A. RankinRepublicanConway1992
34Stephen GoldfinchRepublicanMurrells Inlet2016
35Jeffrey R. GrahamDemocraticCamden2024
36Jeff ZellRepublicanSumter2024
37Larry GroomsRepublicanBonneau1997*
38Sean BennettRepublicanSummerville2012
39Tom FernandezRepublicanSummerville2024
40Brad HuttoDemocraticOrangeburg1996*
41Matt LeberRepublicanJohn's Island2024
42Deon TedderDemocraticCharleston2023*
43Chip CampsenRepublicanIsle of Palms2004
44Brian AdamsRepublicanGoose Creek2020
45Margie Bright MatthewsDemocraticCharleston2015*
46Tom DavisRepublicanBeaufort2008

: *Senator was first elected in a special election

Composition of the Senate over time

Main article: Political party strength in South Carolina

YearDemocratic
PartyRepublican
PartyIndependent
/ Other
Majority
1865003131
18686The election of a Democrat from Abbeville was declared void and the seat remained vacant.25019
1870526121
1872825017
18740267All 7 were members of the Conservative Party of South Carolina.19
1876151803
1878285023
1880332031
1882332031
1884323029
1886332031
1888350035
1890323029
1892360036
18942907All 7 were Independent Democrats.22
1896360036
1898–
1908410041
1910–
1916440044
1918–
1964460046
1966436137
1968473044
1970442042
1972433040
1976424038
1980397032
19843610026
19883511024
19923016014
1996252104
2000Greer]], switched to the Republicans to break the tie.2402
20042026Republicans gained an additional seat in a 2007 special election.06
2008192708
20121828010
20161828010
20201530114

References

  • Dubin, Michael J. (2007) Party affiliations in the state legislatures : a year by year summary, 1796–2006.

References

  1. "ARTICLE 3. Legislative Department., SECTION 9. Sessions of General Assembly.". 2010 South Carolina Constitution – Unannotated.
  2. (4 November 2020). "South Carolina Election Results". [[The New York Times]].
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

south-carolina-general-assembly state-upper-houses-in-the-united-states
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about South Carolina Senate — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report