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Ballot access requirements for political parties in South Carolina

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Although there are hundreds of political parties in the United States, only certain parties qualify to have the names of their candidates for office printed on election ballots. In order to qualify for ballot placement, a party must meet certain requirements that vary from state to state. For example, in some states, a party may have to file a petition in order to qualify for ballot placement. In other states, a party must organize around a candidate for a specific office; that candidate must, in turn, win a percentage of the vote in order for the party to be granted ballot status. In still other states, an aspiring political party must register a certain number of voters.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • As of May 2025, South Carolina officially recognized nine political parties: theAlliance,Constitution,Democratic,Green, Forward Party (previously Independence), Labor,Libertarian,Republican, and United Citizens parties.
  • In some states, a candidate may choose to have a label other than that of an officially recognized party appear alongside his or her name on the ballot. Such labels are calledpolitical party designations. South Carolina does not allow candidates to use political party designations.

    • To learn more about ballot access requirements for political candidates in South Carolina, seethis article.

    DocumentIcon.jpgSeestate election laws

    Process for a political party to obtain ballot status

    Seal of South Carolina

    DocumentIcon.jpgSee statutes:Title 7, Chapter 9,Title 7, Chapter 11 of the South Carolina Code of Laws

    A political party is defined as "a political party, organization, or association certified by the state election commission."[1]

    General requirements

    Political parties desiring to nominate candidates for offices to be voted on in a general or special election must, before doing so, petition the state election commission for certification no later than six months before the election.[2]

    A petition for the certification of a new political party must be signed by 10,000 or more registered electors residing inSouth Carolina. The petition must provide the name of the party, which must be substantially different from the name of any other party previously certified.[3]

    In order for any political party to retain certification status in the state, it must perform the following organizational tasks as required by law:

    1. New political parties must organize at the precinct level by holding county conventions before March 31 in each general election year during a month determined by the state committee.[2][4]
    2. New political parties must organize and hold a state convention before May 15 in every general election year on a day and at a time fixed by the state committee and announced publicly at least 10 days before the meeting.[5]
    3. New political parties must nominate candidates for national, state, multi-county district, countywide, or less than countywide office by either convention or party primary.[6]
    4. New political parties must certify their candidates in at least one of two consecutive general elections held in November in an even-numbered year or in any other election which might be held within the period of time intervening between the two general elections.[7]

    Political parties

    See also:List of political parties in the United States


    As of May 2024, there were nine recognized political parties inSouth Carolina. These are listed in the table below.[8]

    PartyWebsite linkBy-laws/platform link
    Alliance Party of South CarolinaLinkParty platform
    Constitution Party of South CarolinaLink
    Democratic Party of South CarolinaLink
    Green Party of South CarolinaLinkParty platform
    Forward Party of South Carolina (formerly Independence Party)Link
    Libertarian Party of South CarolinaLinkParty platform
    Republican Party of South CarolinaLinkParty platform
    South Carolina Workers PartyLinkParty platform
    United Citizens Party of South Carolina

    Historical events

    2014

    Convention nominations ruling

    On April 24, 2014, theSouth Carolina Supreme Court ruled that ballot-qualified parties that have nominated candidates via convention in the past may continue to do so without first obtaining permission from their prospective primary voters. The decision resulted from a lawsuit filed by theLibertarian Party against the South Carolina State Election Commission. The Libertarian Party challenged a requirement imposed by the enactment ofSB 2 in 2013. The bill stipulated, among other things, that parties cannot transition from primary nominations to convention nominations without first seeking the approval of primary voters. The Libertarians filed the lawsuit in an effort to clarify ambiguities surrounding that provision.[9]

    American Party certification

    In January 2014,South Carolina certified the newest political party in the state, the American Party of South Carolina.[10] The party was led by Oscar Lovelace, aRepublican candidate forgovernor in 2006, andJim Rex, a formerstate education superintendent and the 2010Democratic nominee forgovernor.[11] The party obtained 16,000 petition signatures, more than the 10,000 required, over the course of a year.[10] "If you are looking for a champion for a single issue, we are not your party," Rex said. The party promised to nominate more "moderate" candidates forSouth Carolina's congressional seats. Its platform included support for term limits and more government transparency.[11]

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    See also

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    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Title 7:1-20," accessed July 10, 2025
    2. ↑2.02.1South Carolina Code of Laws, "Title 7: Elections, Section 7-9-10," accessed July 10, 2025
    3. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Title 7-9-10," accessed July 10, 2025
    4. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Title 7-9-70," accessed July 10, 2025
    5. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Section 7-9-100," accessed July 10, 2025
    6. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Section 7-11-20, 7-11-30, and 7-13-40," accessed July 10, 2025
    7. ↑South Carolina Code of Laws, "Section 7-9-10," accessed July 10, 2025
    8. ↑South Carolina State Election Commission, "Certified Political Parties of South Carolina," accessed May 23, 2024
    9. ↑Ballot Access News, "South Carolina Supreme Court Rules that Minor Parties Don't Need to Get Permission from Primary Voters to Continue Nominating by Convention," April 24, 2014
    10. ↑10.010.1WISTV.com, "American Party, brainchild of former gubernatorial candidates, officially certified," accessed February 3, 2014
    11. ↑11.011.1Herald Online, "Former GOP, Democratic gubernatorial candidates seek to create third party in S.C.," accessed February 3, 2014
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