Seven Incumbents Lose Seats
SCFOR tracked thirty-two (32) incumbent races in yesterday’s Primary Elections for the SC House. These races covered the whole gamut this year, with long-serving members, House leadership, and newly elected members facing challengers. In all, a total of seven incumbents lost their seats:

• Rep. Rita Allison (R- Spartanburg)
• Rep. Lin Bennett (R-Charleston)
• Rep. Wendy Brawley (D-Richland)
• Rep. West Cox (R-Spartanburg)
• Rep. Vic Dabney (R-Kershaw)
• Rep. Rick Martin (R-Newberry)
• Rep. Brian White (R-Anderson)

A look at all incumbent races is illustrated below. A full tracking list for races for the SC House, Governor, US House, and US Senate can be found on our website. 

Open Seats Closer to Being Filled, Runoffs and General Elections for Some

Following retirements and redistricting, there are 15 open seats in the SC House of Representatives. Ten (10) of those seats had primary races, and because candidates must receive 50% or more of the vote to avoid a runoff, we will see a few runoffs on June 28. An overview of the open seats is illustrated below:

As you can see, a few primaries in the open seats were a winner take all event, as the winners will not face opposition in November:

• Heath Sessions won the primary to fill the York County seat (Dist.46) currently held by Rep. Gary Simrill (retiring).
• David Vaughn won the primary to fill the Greenville County seat (Dist. 27) currently held by Rep. Garry Smith (retiring). 

Governor's Race: McMaster v. Cunningham

Governor Henry McMaster will face Democrat Joe Cunningham in the November General Election. There were five candidates in the Democratic primary, with arguably the main competition being between Cunningham and fellow opponent Senator Mia McLeod (Richland). 

Cunningham received 55% of the vote, securing the Democratic nomination.  

Fry, Mace Declared Winners for Congressional Seats

State Rep. Russell Fry defeated incumbent Congressman Tom Rice in the 7th Congressional District. Despite the crowded field, Fry easily garnered 51% of the vote. Fry will face Democrat Daryl Scot in the November election.