Who won the 2024 South Carolina Senate races? Here are the final election poll results
Democratic State Rep. Russell Ott defeated Republican business owner Jason Guerry in their race to succeed Lexington Democratic state Sen. Nikki Setzler, in District 26, which includes parts of Calhoun, Lexington and Richland counties.
With all precincts reporting, Ott was leading 21,108 votes to 17,360 votes.
Confident in the outcome, Ott arrived at his election night watch party at 9:40 p.m. and addressed supporters.
“I look out across this room y’all, and I see Democrats, I see Republicans, and I see independents,” Ott said. “I see people. And that’s what this campaign has been about. We decided early on that we wanted to try something new, that we didn’t want to play this extreme partisanship game, where we had to make people not like each other. We wanted to bring people together.”
Setzler announced earlier this year he would not run for reelection after serving in the upper chamber since 1977.
The district was drawn to be a competitive district that favors Democratic candidates.
Ott had the campaign cash advantage over Guerry, a first-time candidate, in the race allowing him to have more television time.
Winning a state Senate election comes with a four-year term and a $10,400 annual salary.
Senate District 35
The Democratic former Camden Mayor Jeffrey Graham defeated Republican business owner Mike Jones with all precincts reporting in in Senate District 35.
Graham has 24,896 votes and Jones has 22,834 votes.
They were running to succeed state Sen. Thomas McElveen, D-Sumter, who did not run for reelection this year.
The district includes parts of Kershaw, Lee, Richland and Sumter counties.
Senate District 17
State Sen. Mike Fanning, D-Fairfield, is headed to an automatic recount in his race against Republican challenger Everett Stubbs.
Stubbs has a 32 vote lead with all precincts reporting in the district that includes parts of Chester, Fairfield, Lancaster and York counties.
Fanning is looking to return to the state’s upper chamber for a third term.
Fanning was one of two senators to vote against the redistricting plan approved in 2022 as his seat became more competitive. He, however, entered the final three weeks of the campaign with a cash advantage over Stubbs.
Senate District 39
Republican attorney Tom Fernandez has unseated state Sen. Vernon Stephens, D-Orangeburg, in state Senate District 39, according to Tuesday’s unofficial results.
Fernandez received 25,785 votes. Stephens had 24,540 votes.
The district covers parts of Berkeley, Dorchester and Orangeburg counties.
Stephens voted against the Senate’s redistricting plan after the district became more competitive for Republicans.
Fernandez appeared to have the cash advantage over Stephens.
Fernandez brought in $144,000 into his campaign. But he loaned himself $100,000 for the race, according to state ethics commission reports.
Stephens has raised $75,000 during the cycle, and only has $5,000 in debt.
Senate District 36
State Sen. Kevin Johnson, D-Clarendon, was defeated Tuesday by Republican challenger Jeff Zell, according to unofficial results.
Zell received 25,597 votes. Johnson received 24,933 votes.
Zell had to overcome a cash disadvantage. Johnson entered the final three weeks with $106,000 in the bank. Zell had less than $1,600. Johnson raised more than $41,000 during the third quarter. Zell raised about $23,600.
The district includes parts of Calhoun, Clarendon, Orangeburg and Sumter counties.
Senate District 10
State Sen. Billy Garrett, R-McCormick, has a clear lead over Democratic challenger Francie Kleckley in Senate District 10 with all but one precinct reporting.
According to Tuesday’s unofficial results, Garrett has 37,677 votes so far. Kleckley received 16,717 votes in the heavily Republican district that covers parts of Greenwood, Lexington and Saluda counties.
Garrett lived in McCormick County when he was first elected in 2020, but he changed his voter registration to Lexington County after the redistricting process.
Garrett also won the GOP nomination in June out of a four-person field.
Senate District 19
State Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine, D-Richland, is favored to win her first full four-year term in the General Assembly’s upper chamber. Devine on Tuesday as she leads Chris Nelums of the United Citizens Party.
With 23 out 37 precincts reporting, Devine has more than 87% of the vote.
No Republicans filed to run in the election.
Devine won a special election in January to complete state Sen. John Scott’s term. Scott died in August 2023.
The district covers part of Richland County.
This story was originally published November 5, 2024 at 10:37 PM.
