2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina

The 2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina took place on November 4, 2014, concurrently with the regular election for the other South Carolina Senate seat. The special-election Senate seat was formerly held by Republican Jim DeMint, who resigned on January 1, 2013 to become president of the Heritage Foundation. Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, announced the appointment of U.S. Representative Tim Scott to fill the seat. Scott ran in the special election and won by beating Democratic candidate and Richland County councilwoman Joyce Dickerson in the November election. This was only the second Senate election since the Seventeenth Amendment (after Illinois in 2004) in which both major party nominees were black, the third being the 2016 Senate election in which Scott also ran.

Not to be confused with 2014 United States Senate election in South Carolina.

2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina
November 4, 2014
 
Nominee Tim Scott Joyce Dickerson
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 757,215 459,583
Percentage 61.1% 37.1%
County results
Scott:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Dickerson:      40-50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
U.S. senator before election

Tim Scott
Republican

 Elected U.S. Senator

Tim Scott
Republican

Elections in South Carolina
Federal government
U.S. President
U.S. Senate
U.S. House of Representatives
State offices
General elections
Gubernatorial elections
State Senate elections
State House elections
Ballot measures

Background

Incumbent Jim DeMint announced on December 6, 2012, that he would resign the Senate seat effective January 1, 2013, to become the president of The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.[1] Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, appointed a replacement to fill the seat until the special election.[2] Haley indicated that she would not appoint a "placeholder" to the seat, but would appoint someone who would stand in a 2014 special election to serve the remaining two years of DeMint's term.[3]

Potential replacements
Congressman Tim Scott was chosen to replace Senator Jim DeMint, following his announced resignation.

According to sources close to Governor Haley, as of December 11, 2012, she had narrowed the list of potential appointees down to five: U.S. Representatives Tim Scott and Trey Gowdy, former South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster, former First Lady of South Carolina Jenny Sanford, and Catherine Templeton, who heads the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.[4] Other politicians mentioned as possible replacements for DeMint included U.S. Representative Mick Mulvaney,[5] South Carolina Representative Nathan Ballentine, former U.S. Representative Gresham Barrett, U.S. Representative Joe Wilson, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, former Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins, former South Carolina Republican Party chairman Katon Dawson, and Haley's deputy chief of staff Tedd Pitts.[6] Comedian Stephen Colbert, a South Carolina native, expressed interest in being appointed the seat, asking his fans to tweet Haley that she should appoint him.[7] Chad Walldorf, the owner of the Sticky Fingers restaurant chain, had also been mentioned as a potential placeholder.[8]

A Public Policy Polling poll released on December 10, 2012, which asked respondents who they wanted to replace DeMint, showed Colbert with the highest total. Colbert had support at 20 percent, followed by Scott at 15 percent, Gowdy at 14 percent, and Sanford at 11 percent.[9] Haley said that she would not appoint Colbert to the seat.[10]

On December 17, 2012, Haley announced that she would appoint Scott to DeMint's seat following his resignation.[11]

Republican primary

Declared

Results
Republican primary results[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Scott (incumbent) 276,147 89.98%
Republican Randall Young 30,741 10.02%
Total votes 306,888 100.00%

Democratic primary

Declared

Withdrew

Declined

Polling
Poll source Date(s)
administered		 Sample
size		 Margin of
error		 Joyce
Dickerson		 Sidney
Moore		 Harry
Pavilack		 Undecided
Clemson University May 26 – June 2, 2014 400 ± 6% 11% 7% 3% 79%

Results
Democratic primary results[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Joyce Dickerson 72,874 65.39%
Democratic Sidney Moore 26,310 23.61%
Democratic Harry Pavilack 11,886 11.06%
Total votes 111,437 100.00%

Independent and third parties

Declared

Removed from ballot

General election

Debates

Endorsements
Tim Scott
Individuals
  • Sarah Palin, former governor of Alaska, Republican Vice-Presidential nominee in 2008 [26]
Organizations
Joyce Dickerson
Organizations
Jill Bossi
Individuals
  • Brandon Armstrong, businesswoman and former Independent candidate for this seat[25]
Organizations
  • The Centrist Project[34]

Predictions
Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[35] Solid R November 3, 2014
Sabato's Crystal Ball[36] Safe R November 3, 2014
Rothenberg Political Report[37] Safe R November 3, 2014
Real Clear Politics[38] Safe R November 3, 2014

Polling
Poll source Date(s)
administered		 Sample
size		 Margin of
error		 Tim
Scott (R)		 Joyce
Dickerson (D)		 Other Undecided
Rasmussen Reports July 9–10, 2014 750 ± 4% 53% 31% 6% 11%
CBS News/NYT/YouGov July 5–24, 2014 1,180 ± 5.4% 52% 40% 2% 9%
CBS News/NYT/YouGov August 18 – September 2, 2014 833 ± 5% 54% 33% 0% 13%
Winthrop University September 21–28, 2014 1,082 ± 3% 52.4% 31.8% 1.9%[39] 13.8%
CBS News/NYT/YouGov September 20 – October 1, 2014 2,663 ± 2% 54% 31% 0% 14%
CBS News/NYT/YouGov October 16–23, 2014 1,566 ± 4% 57% 28% 0% 15%

Results
United States Senate special election in South Carolina, 2014[40]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Tim Scott (incumbent) 757,215 61.12% -0.36%
Democratic Joyce Dickerson 459,583 37.09% +9.44%
American Jill Bossi 21,652 1.75% N/A
n/a Write-ins 532 0.04% -1.62%
Total votes '1,238,982' '100.0%' N/A
Republican hold

See also

References
  1. "South Carolina Republican US Sen. Jim DeMint resigning to take over at Heritage Foundation". The Washington Post. December 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  2. "All eyes on Nikki Haley to pick Jim DeMint successor". Politico. December 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  3. "Buzz builds around Jim DeMint successor". Politico. December 10, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  4. "First on CNN: Haley finalizes short list for DeMint seat". December 11, 2012. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  5. "Mulvaney in touch with Haley about Senate seat". Politico. December 10, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  6. Wilson, Reid (December 6, 2012). "Who Will Replace Jim DeMint?". National Journal. Archived from the original on December 9, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  7. "Stephen Colbert to Nikki Haley: Pick Me". December 7, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  8. "Business Briefs: Walldorf eyed as DeMint successor". Chattanooga Times Free Press. Associated Press. December 8, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  9. Robillard, Kevin (December 10, 2012). "PP: South Carolina voters want Stephen Colbert". Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  10. "Nikki Haley: I won't appoint Stephen Colbert to Senate". Associated Press. December 8, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
  11. "Tim Scott to succeed Jim DeMint in Senate". Politico. December 17, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2012.
  12. "Tim Scott quiet on Mark Sanford congressional run". Politico.Com. Retrieved December 24, 2012.
  13. Shain, Andrew (March 27, 2014). "ELECTION 2014 (updated): Who's filed for statewide, State House, Congressional offices". The State. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  14. "Official results 2014 Statewide Primary Election June 10, 2014". South Carolina State Election Commission. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  15. Renee Standera (October 3, 2013). "County council member to run for U.S. Senate seat". wistv. Archived from the original on November 2, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  16. George Mast (March 17, 2014). "Senator Allen Installed as Chair of National Foundation for Women Legislators". senatenj.com. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  17. Zou, Jie Jenny (March 27, 2014). "Former York County Council member to run for Scott's U.S. Senate seat". The Herald. Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  18. Jamie Self (September 14, 2013). "Exclusive: Another unknown Democrat seeks US Senate seat in SC". The State. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013.
  19. Shain, Andrew (December 13, 2013). "Former Obama aide sets sights on Scott's US Senate seat". The State. Archived from the original on December 15, 2013. Retrieved December 14, 2013.
  20. Self, Jamie (March 6, 2014). "Democrat Wade exits US Senate race citing fundraising woes". The State. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2014.
  21. Shain, Andrew (December 9, 2012). "THE BUZZ: A reunion, of sorts, for the Sanfords?". The State. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  22. Beam, Adam (August 25, 2013). "The Buzz: Rand Paul on Lindsey Graham, second Democrat may challenge Tim Scott". The State. Archived from the original on August 25, 2013. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  23. "Tega Cay exec running for U.S. Senate". Fort Mill Times. March 24, 2014. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
  24. Self, Jamie (November 27, 2013). "ELECTION 2014: Independent collecting signatures to run against Tim Scott". The State. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 5, 2014.
  25. Kopf, Schuyler (August 12, 2014). "Independent challenger to Tim Scott fails to get on the ballot". The Post and Courier. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  26. Governor Sarah Palin’s First Endorsement of 2014: Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina | A Time For Choosing
  27. "American Conservative Union PAC Endorses Senator Tim Scott". Tim Scott for Senate. May 5, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  28. Glueck, Katie (March 17, 2014). "FreedomWorks backs Ted Yoho, Tim Scott, Mark Sanford". Politico. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  29. York, Frank (January 7, 2014). "GING-PAC Endorses Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) For 2014!". GING-PAC. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  30. "Chamber of Commerce Endorses Senator Tim Scott". Tim Scott for Senate. January 30, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  31. "SC AFL-CIO Endorses Candidates For the US House and Senate". AFL-CIO. 2014. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  32. "Official UAW Endorsements- South Carolina". UAW. 2014. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  33. "Election 2014: Boilermakers recommend candidates". Boilermakers. 2014. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  34. "Breaking News: The Centrist Project Voice Endorses a Wide Portfolio of Moderate Candidates". The Centrist Project. July 9, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
  35. "2014 Senate Race Ratings for November 3, 2014". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  36. "The Crystal Ball's Final 2014 Picks". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  37. "2014 Senate Ratings". Senate Ratings. The Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  38. "2014 Elections Map - Battle for the Senate 2014". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  39. Jill Bossi (AP) 1.8%, Other 0.1%
  40. "2014 South Carolina Special U.S Senate Election Results".
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