Black voters’ enthusiasm drives historic gains for SC Democrats

COLUMBIA — Black and straight-ticket voters propelled Democrats to their biggest election gains in South Carolina’s modern history, according to an analysis of election data.

Annie Andrews’ victory over appointed U.S. Sen. Darline Graham marked Democrats’ first statewide win in 20 years, as well as the first time that South Carolina voters sent a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since Fritz Holling’s last re-election in 1998. Plus, Democrats flipped a U.S. House seat and 10 state House seats.

State Rep. Jermaine Johnson also came within 5 percentage points of becoming South Carolina’s first Black governor.

While he and other Black nominees for statewide office — a slate that included Democrats for superintendent of education, agriculture commissioner, treasurer, comptroller general, and secretary of state — fell short, the enthusiasm of Black voters made Democrats’ flips possible.

“Black voters are more than the base. They’re the heartbeat, the soul, and they showed up in a way that benefited all of our candidates,” Democratic Party Chair Christale Spain told reporters last week. “So, it was really the driving force behind our base turnout, and it was monumental.”

Black voters made up a quarter of all voters in the midterm, turning out in numbers close to the last presidential election, according to state election data certified this week. While it’s impossible to know precisely how many of them voted for Democrats, exit polls show Black voters overwhelmingly vote blue.

Election data shows a big jump in Black voters from the last midterm four years ago. Exactly how big is unclear, since it wasn’t until 2024 that the state separately reported the numbers of Black, Hispanic, Asian and Native American voters. Before then, the breakdown was simply white and non-white.

However, there were 29% more Black voters participating in this month’s election than all non-white voters in 2022. Given in numbers, the nearly 503,200 Black voters participating this year compares to about 390,500 non-white voters in 2022.

More Black voters cast a ballot for the Nov. 3 election than all non-white voters in any midterm election going back to at least 1986, the first midterm when the state reported demographic data.

Overall, fewer voters participated compared to 2024, which is unsurprising since more voters come out for presidential elections.

However, while total participation fell 20%, the number of Black voters decreased by just 7%, from about 542,200 in 2024.

Excitement for Johnson, only the second Black major-party nominee for governor in state history, benefited Andrews’ contest as well as down-ballot races, said Kwadwo Poku-Agyemang, director of the Public Opinion and Social Behavior Research Institute at Claflin University.

A poll he conducted in mid-October showed more than 40% of respondents most interested in the governor’s race, with Johnson winning.

“When a candidate really compels you to show up, often you take some of that love and spread it among all members of their party,” Poku-Agyemang said.

On Election Day, hundreds of students from Claflin and South Carolina State universities, two neighboring historically Black colleges in Orangeburg, marched together to the polling precinct on SC State’s campus chanting “My vote matters!” and carrying signs. Students lined up to cast their ballot.

Johnson was there to cheer them on. Ten days earlier, he and Andrews mingled with students at SC State’s homecoming football game.

“Every major change this state has ever seen started with young people deciding they were done waiting,” he wrote on social media after the march. “You are carrying that same torch right now, and I could not be prouder to have you at the front of this New SC.”

The “march to the polls” was indicative of a surge in the normally elusive young voters.

Almost 100,000 South Carolinians ages 18 to 24 voted this election, or nearly 30,000 more than in 2022. That represents a hike of more than 42%.

“They were energized and they were engaged,” said Roshanda Pratt, a communications strategist on Johnson’s campaign, noting her daughter was among Claflin students voting for the first time.

“It was no longer their ‘parents’ election,'” she said about young voters dealing directly with student loans and gas prices. “They knew their voice was just as important.”

The next age bracket, ages 25 to 44, saw the second-highest increase, with 28% more voters than four years ago.

But older voters still came out in higher total numbers, with people ages 45 and older making up 73% of all voters in the midterm, according to state election data.

The record participation topped more than 2 million total voters, or about 60% of all registered voters. Four years ago, about 51% of registered voters participated.

Straight tickets

Republicans have for years touted an increase in straight-ticket voting for GOP candidates.

South Carolina is among just six states nationwide that allow voters to simply pick a party for all partisan races on the ballot, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Straight-ticket voting accounted for 63% of all ballots cast in this election, the highest percentage since 2020.

More Republicans than Democrats still checked the party box. Of all straight ticket voters, Democrats’ share was 48%.

That represented a big jump in the number of Democratic straight tickets — 100,000 more than the presidential election two years ago.

That helps explain how the Democrats flipped 10 state House seats and came close to flipping others, even in districts normally deep red.

It’s also evidence of people who normally vote Republican crossing over to vote for Andrews, said Mark Owens, an associate professor of political science at The Citadel.

In the U.S. Senate race, straight tickets made up 59% of Andrews’ total and 70% of Graham’s total.

Democratic Party officials said they put an emphasis on selecting the straight party option this election.

“Republicans have long understood the value of straight-ticket voting, and this year, Democrats aggressively encouraged it as well,” Spain said in a statement to the SC Daily Gazette.