SouthernWorldwide.com – In a surprising turn of events in South Carolina’s Republican gubernatorial runoff, former President Donald Trump emerged as a winner despite not being on the ballot.
The candidate Trump had endorsed, State Attorney General Alan Wilson, secured the GOP nomination by defeating Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette. This victory came in the race to succeed the term-limited Republican Governor Henry McMaster, as reported by the Associated Press shortly after polls closed.
However, the outcome was preordained in a way, as Trump had endorsed both candidates in the runoff. This situation presented an unusual test of Trump’s significant influence within the Republican Party and the potency of his endorsements in primary contests.
The narrative surrounding this race was further complicated by a “double endorsement drama,” where Trump initially hedged his bets in the South Carolina GOP gubernatorial runoff.
Trump had publicly endorsed Evette late in the previous month, just about a week and a half before the gubernatorial primary election.
Evette had initially led a crowded field of candidates in the primary election, with Wilson securing the second position. Other notable contenders included Representatives Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, along with businessman Rom Reddy. As no candidate achieved a majority, the top two, Evette and Wilson, advanced to the runoff election.
Following their failure to advance, both Mace and Norman declared their support for Wilson. Additionally, Wilson received an endorsement a week prior from Senator Ted Cruz, a prominent conservative figure from Texas.
In a last-minute move on Friday, Trump issued an endorsement for Wilson, in addition to his earlier backing of Evette. This dual endorsement appeared to be a strategic decision by the former president to cover his bases.
Reacting to Trump’s conflicting endorsements, Mace humorously posted “LMAO” on social media, an acronym for “laughing my a– off.”
The runoff election between Evette and Wilson became intensely competitive. In their final debate the previous week, both candidates engaged in personal attacks and accused each other of dishonesty and misrepresenting their past actions.
Wilson focused on differentiating his experience as attorney general from what he characterized as Evette’s largely ceremonial role as lieutenant governor. He also highlighted his background as a combat veteran, prosecutor, and the state’s chief law enforcement officer.
Evette, who had received an endorsement from McMaster in February, positioned herself as an outsider and a businesswoman with Trump’s backing, while portraying Wilson as a career politician.
It has been 28 years since a Democratic candidate has won a gubernatorial election in South Carolina. Wilson is now widely considered the favorite in the general election against the Democratic nominee, State Representative Jermaine Johnson.
The considerable power of presidential endorsements has been evident in GOP primaries over the past two months. Trump’s chosen candidates have successfully unseated incumbents he targeted in significant contests in Indiana, Louisiana, Kentucky, and Texas, drawing considerable national attention.
However, Trump’s streak of endorsements in statewide and congressional Republican primaries was broken three weeks prior. His eleventh-hour endorsement of Republican Representative Randy Feenstra of Iowa, in the race to succeed retiring GOP Governor Kim Reynolds, was insufficient to secure a victory for the three-term congressman.
Feenstra was narrowly defeated by Zach Lahn, a businessman, farmer, and former political strategist. Lahn was supported by the political factions of MAHA, the Make America Healthy Again movement associated with Trump’s former Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Turning Point USA, a influential conservative organization co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.
Trump regained momentum two weeks ago. Evette secured the top spot in the GOP gubernatorial primary, and long-time Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina won a majority of the votes in the Republican Senate primary, thus avoiding a runoff.
Graham, who was endorsed by Trump, faced challenges from five other candidates, including conservative businessman Mark Lynch. Lynch had criticized Graham for his support of the war in Iran and was backed by some MAGA leaders who had been critical of the former president.
Last week, Trump-backed candidates achieved victories in two out of three major races in Georgia and Alabama. The single setback occurred against a billionaire businessman who invested over $100 million of his personal funds to support his campaign.
Representative Barry Moore, a member of the House Freedom Caucus and a long-time Trump supporter who received the president’s endorsement, comfortably defeated his rival Jared Hudson. Hudson, a former Navy SEAL sniper, was supported by several prominent conservative figures in Alabama’s solidly Republican Senate runoff.
In Georgia’s closely contested Republican Senate runoff, an eleventh-hour endorsement from Trump the previous weekend helped propel Representative Mike Collins, a vocal MAGA supporter, to victory over former college football coach Derek Dooley. Dooley was endorsed by the popular conservative Governor Brian Kemp.
Collins is set to face Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff in the general election. This race is considered one of a few that will likely determine whether the GOP maintains its narrow majority in the Senate following the midterm elections.
Jones consistently highlighted his endorsement from Trump. In contrast, Jackson, who launched his campaign in February after Trump had already endorsed Jones, repeatedly stated that Trump had inspired him to run.
However, in Georgia’s GOP gubernatorial runoff, the candidate Trump backed, Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, who also received an endorsement from Kemp the previous weekend, was defeated by Rick Jackson. Jackson ran his campaign as an outsider.
A political operative for Trump, commenting on the previous Tuesday’s loss by Trump-backed Jones, noted that “Rick Jackson set a record for spending in a statewide Republican primary. He spent Tom Steyer level money in a state a fraction of the size of California. That’s going to have an impact.”
The operative, who requested anonymity to speak freely, also emphasized that “Rick bearhugged Trump. All of his ads and material was about how he’s going to be Trump’s favorite governor. So the race was not really a referendum on Trump.”
