And they’re off: Candidate filing period ends for 2026 S.C. elections

If elections had opening bells, South Carolina’s would have rung at noon today, as the filing period for state, federal and local races officially closed — meaning that June’s 9th’s 2026 Republican and Democratic primary slates are set.

High-profile races include a hotly contested gubernatorial race to replace the term-limited Gov. Henry McMaster, a large Republican primary field challenging incumbent U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and an even larger group of 18 Democrats and Republicans running in the U.S. 1st Congressional District — including former GOP Gov. and Congressman Mark Sanford.

All seats in the S.C. House of Representatives will also be on the ballot.

In the governor’s race, most polling to date has shown incumbent Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson and retiring U.S. 1st District Rep. Nancy Mace locked in a three-way race on the GOP side, though most political observers say the contest is still wide open. Other GOP candidates include Spartanburg Sen. Josh Kimbrell, 5th District U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, businessman Rom Reddy and Hartsville businesswoman Jacqueline Hicks DuBose.

For Democrats, Richland County Rep. Jermaine Johnson, Upstate businessman Billy Webster and Lowcountry attorney Mullins McLeod will vie for the party’s gubernatorial nod.

In the U.S. Senate race, Graham will face six GOP opponents, including former Trump administration official Paul Dans. And on the Democratic side, former 1st Congressional District candidate and physician Annie Andrews is squaring off against Brandon Brown and Kyle Freeman.

But it was the 1st Congressional District contest that got most of the attention on filing day, when Sanford made a last-minute surprise appearance in the race. The former two-term governor will be running in the GOP primary against Charleston County Councilwoman Jenny Costa Honeycutt, Berkeley County Rep. Mark Smith and a field of eight other candidates.

Meanwhile, across the aisle, a total of seven Democrats are running for the Lowcountry seat, including Charleston attorney and Coast Guard veteran Mac Deford, Beaufort nonprofit counselor Mayra Rivera-Vazquez and Charleston Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore (ret.).

Before the day was out, the chairs of both major state political parties said they were pleased with their fields at every level.

For a full list of 2026 candidates, visit the state elections website at scvotes.gov.

This is a developing story. Please check back for more.