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The 2002 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002, to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Mark Sanford, the Republican nominee, defeated incumbent Democratic governor Jim Hodges to become the 115th governor of South Carolina. Hodges became only the third incumbent governor and the first Democratic governor in South Carolina history to lose reelection.
Democratic primary
Governor Jim Hodges faced no opposition from South Carolina Democrats and avoided a primary election.
Republican primary
The South Carolina Republican Party held their primary on June 11, 2002, and the runoff on June 25, 2002. The contest became a race between Lieutenant Governor Bob Peeler from the Upstate and Mark Sanford, a former representative of the 1st congressional district in the Lowcountry. Sanford received the support of the candidates eliminated from the runoff election and easily defeated Peeler.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Sanford | 122,143 | 38.62 | |
| Republican | Bob Peeler | 119,026 | 37.64 | |
| Republican | Charlie Condon | 49,469 | 15.64 | |
| Republican | Ken Wingate | 12,366 | 3.91 | |
| Republican | Jim Miles | 8,566 | 2.71 | |
| Republican | Reb Sutherland | 2,770 | 0.88 | |
| Republican | Bill Branton | 1,915 | 0.61 | |
| Total votes | 316,255 | 100 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Sanford | 183,820 | 60.13 | |
| Republican | Bob Peeler | 121,881 | 39.87 | |
| Total votes | 305,701 | 100 | ||
General election
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report | Tossup | October 31, 2002 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Lean R (flip) | November 4, 2002 |
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Jim Hodges (D) |
Mark Sanford (R) |
Other / Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA | November 1–3, 2002 | 764 (LV) | ± 3.6% | 52% | 46% | 2% |
Results
The general election was held on November 5, 2002, and Mark Sanford was elected as the next governor of South Carolina. Turnout was higher than in the previous gubernatorial election because of the competitive nature of the race between the two parties. Activist and author Kevin Alexander Gray was a gubernatorial candidate representing the South Carolina United Citizens’ Party & Green Party. He did not have the required signatures to be on the ballot, and consequently ran as a write-in candidate.
Swing by countyLegend
- Democratic—+15-20%
- Democratic—+10-15%
- Democratic—+5-10%
- Democratic—+<5%
- Republican—+<5%
- Republican—+5-10%
- Republican—+10-15%
- Republican—+15-20%
- Republican—+20-25%
- Republican—+30-35%
- Republican—+35-40%
Trend by countyLegend
- Democratic—+10-15%
- Democratic—+5-10%
- Democratic—+<5%
- Republican—+<5%
- Republican—+5-10%
- Republican—+10-15%
- Republican—+15-20%
- Republican—+20-25%
- Republican—+25-30%
- Republican—+35-40%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mark Sanford | 585,422 | 52.85 | +7.6 | |
| Democratic | Jim Hodges (incumbent) | 521,140 | 47.05 | −6.3 | |
| Write-in | 1,163 | 0.1 | -0.1 | ||
| Majority | 64,282 | 5.9 | −2.1 | ||
| Turnout | 1,107,725 | 54.1 | +1.1 | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | |||||
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Abbeville (Largest city: Abbeville)
- Georgetown (Largest city: Murrells Inlet)
- Lancaster (Largest city: Lancaster)
- Barnwell (Largest city: Barnwell)
- Berkeley (Largest city: Goose Creek)
- Horry (largest town: Myrtle Beach)
- Dorchester (Largest city: North CHarleston)
- Edgefield (Largest city: Edgefield)
- Florence (Largest city: Florence)
- Greenwood (Largest city: Greenwood)
- Kershaw (Largest city: Cmaden)
- Laurens (Largest city: Laurens)
- Newberry (Largest city: Newberry)
- Saluda (Largest city: Saluda)
See also
- Governor of South Carolina
- List of governors of South Carolina
- South Carolina gubernatorial elections
Notes
- Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear
References
- "Election Returns from Primaries and General Elections (Statewide): | SCVotes.org". Archived from the original on November 3, 2010. Retrieved October 31, 2010.
- "Election Returns from Primaries and General Elections (Statewide): | SCVotes.org". Archived from the original on November 3, 2010. Retrieved October 31, 2010.
- "Governor Updated October 31, 2002 | The Cook Political Report". The Cook Political Report. October 31, 2002. Archived from the original on December 8, 2002. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
- "Governors Races". www.centerforpolitics.org. November 4, 2002. Archived from the original on December 12, 2002. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
- SurveyUSA
- O'Cain, Susan (July 16, 2002). "Gray to run as write in candidate". WLTX-TV. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
External links
| Preceded by 1998 |
South Carolina gubernatorial elections | Succeeded by 2006 |
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| State Senate | |
| State House | |
| Governor | |
| U.S. President | |
| U.S. Senate |
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| U.S. House |
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| See also: Political party strength in South Carolina | |
| (2001 ←) 2002 United States elections (→ 2003) | |
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| U.S. Senate |
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| U.S. House |
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| Governors |
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| State Attorneys General | |
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