2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina County resultsScott: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%Dickerson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80%
The2014 United States Senate special election in South Carolina took place on November 4, 2014, concurrently with theregular election for the other South Carolina Senate seat . The special-election Senate seat was formerly held by RepublicanJim DeMint , who resigned on January 2, 2013, to become president ofthe Heritage Foundation .
Nikki Haley , the Republicangovernor of South Carolina , announced the appointment of U.S. RepresentativeTim Scott to fill the seat. Scott ran in the special election and won by beating Democratic candidate andRichland County councilwomanJoyce Dickerson in the November election. Scott became the first black senator in the state's history and the first in a former Confederate state since 1881.[ 1]
The election was noted for being the second U.S. Senate election since the passage of theSeventeenth Amendment , and the first in a former Confederate state in which both major party nominees were black.[ b]
On December 6, 2012, SenatorJim DeMint announced his intention to resign effective January 1, 2013, to become the president ofthe Heritage Foundation , aconservative think tank .[ 2]
Nikki Haley , thegovernor of South Carolina , appointed a replacement to fill the seat until the special election.[ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
Senate replacement process [ edit ] CongressmanTim Scott was chosen to replace SenatorJim 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:
Other politicians mentioned as possible replacements for DeMint included U.S. RepresentativesMick Mulvaney [ 7] Joe Wilson , former U.S. RepresentativeGresham Barrett ,state representative Nathan Ballentine , South Carolina Attorney GeneralAlan Wilson , formerAmbassador toCanada David Wilkins , formerSouth Carolina Republican Party chairKaton Dawson , and Haley's deputy chief of staff Tedd Pitts.[ 8]
Liberal comedianStephen Colbert , a South Carolina native, expressed interest in being appointed to the seat, asking his fans totweet Haley that she should appoint him.[ 9] [ 10]
[ edit ] APublic Policy Polling poll released on December 10, 2012, which asked respondents who they wanted to replace DeMint, showed Colbert with the highest total. He had support at 20 percent, followed by Scott at 15 percent, Gowdy at 14 percent, and Sanford at 11 percent.[ 11] [ 12]
Republican primary results[ 15] Party Candidate Votes % Republican Tim Scott (incumbent) 276,147 89.98% Republican Randall Young 30,741 10.02% Total votes 306,888 100.00%
Poll source Date(s) Sample Margin of Joyce Sidney Harry Undecided Clemson University [ 24] May 26 – June 2, 2014 400 ± 6% 11% 7% 3% 79%
Democratic primary results[ 15] 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 [ edit ] Removed from ballot [ edit ] Jill Bossi
Individuals
Brandon Armstrong, businesswoman and former Independent candidate for this seat[ 27] Organizations
Poll source Date(s) Sample Margin of Tim Joyce Other Undecided Rasmussen Reports [ 41] July 9–10, 2014 750 ± 4% 53% 31% 6% 11% CBS News /NYT /YouGov [ 42] July 5–24, 2014 1,180 ± 5.4% 52% 40% 2% 9% CBS News /NYT /YouGov [ 43] August 18 – September 2, 2014 833 ± 5% 54% 33% 0% 13% Winthrop University [ 44] September 21–28, 2014 1,082 ± 3% 52.4% 31.8% 1.9%[ 45] 13.8% CBS News /NYT /YouGov [ 46] September 20 – October 1, 2014 2,663 ± 2% 54% 31% 0% 14% CBS News /NYT /YouGov [ 46] October 16–23, 2014 1,566 ± 4% 57% 28% 0% 15%
United States Senate special election in South Carolina, 2014[ 47] 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 Write-in 532 0.04% -1.62% Total votes 1,238,982 100.0% N/A Republican hold
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic [ edit ] ^ Holpuch, Amanda (November 5, 2014)."Tim Scott becomes first black senator elected in south since Reconstruction" .The Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 . RetrievedSeptember 28, 2025 . ^ "South Carolina Republican US Sen. Jim DeMint resigning to take over at Heritage Foundation" .The Washington Post the original on February 20, 2019. RetrievedDecember 6, 2012 .^ "All eyes on Nikki Haley to pick Jim DeMint successor" .Politico . RetrievedDecember 6, 2012 .^ "Buzz builds around Jim DeMint successor" .Politico . RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 .^ "Tim Scott to succeed Jim DeMint in Senate" .Politico . RetrievedDecember 17, 2012 .^ "First on CNN: Haley finalizes short list for DeMint seat" . December 11, 2012. Archived fromthe original on July 14, 2014. RetrievedDecember 11, 2012 .^ "Mulvaney in touch with Haley about Senate seat" .Politico . RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 .^ Wilson, Reid (December 6, 2012)."Who Will Replace Jim DeMint?" .National Journal . Archived fromthe original on December 9, 2012. RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 . ^ "Stephen Colbert to Nikki Haley: Pick Me" . December 7, 2012. RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 .^ "Business Briefs: Walldorf eyed as DeMint successor" .Chattanooga Times Free Press . Associated Press. December 8, 2012. RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 .^ Robillard, Kevin (December 10, 2012)."PP: South Carolina voters want Stephen Colbert" . RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 . ^ "Nikki Haley: I won't appoint Stephen Colbert to Senate" . Associated Press. December 8, 2012. RetrievedDecember 10, 2012 .^ "Tim Scott quiet on Mark Sanford congressional run" . Politico.Com. RetrievedDecember 24, 2012 .^a b c Shain, Andrew (March 27, 2014)."ELECTION 2014 (updated): Who's filed for statewide, State House, Congressional offices" .The State the original on March 28, 2014. RetrievedMarch 27, 2014 . ^a b "Official results 2014 Statewide Primary Election June 10, 2014" . South Carolina State Election Commission. RetrievedJuly 22, 2014 .^ Renee Standera (October 3, 2013)."County council member to run for U.S. Senate seat" .wistv . Archived fromthe original on November 2, 2013. RetrievedOctober 30, 2013 . ^ George Mast (March 17, 2014)."Senator Allen Installed as Chair of National Foundation for Women Legislators" .senatenj.com . Archived fromthe original on May 21, 2014. RetrievedMay 21, 2014 . ^ Zou, Jie Jenny (March 27, 2014)."Former York County Council member to run for Scott's U.S. Senate seat" .The Herald the original on March 28, 2014. RetrievedMarch 27, 2014 . ^ Jamie Self (September 14, 2013)."Exclusive: Another unknown Democrat seeks US Senate seat in SC" . The State. Archived fromthe original on November 1, 2013. ^ Shain, Andrew (December 13, 2013)."Former Obama aide sets sights on Scott's US Senate seat" .The State the original on December 15, 2013. RetrievedDecember 14, 2013 . ^ Self, Jamie (March 6, 2014)."Democrat Wade exits US Senate race citing fundraising woes" .The State the original on March 6, 2014. RetrievedMarch 7, 2014 . ^a b c Shain, Andrew (December 9, 2012)."THE BUZZ: A reunion, of sorts, for the Sanfords?" .The State the original on November 1, 2013. RetrievedAugust 21, 2013 . ^ Beam, Adam (August 25, 2013)."The Buzz: Rand Paul on Lindsey Graham, second Democrat may challenge Tim Scott" .The State the original on August 25, 2013. RetrievedAugust 26, 2013 . ^ Clemson University ^ "Tega Cay exec running for U.S. Senate" .Fort Mill Times . March 24, 2014. RetrievedMarch 26, 2014 .^ Self, Jamie (November 27, 2013)."ELECTION 2014: Independent collecting signatures to run against Tim Scott" .The State the original on February 21, 2014. RetrievedFebruary 5, 2014 . ^a b Kopf, Schuyler (August 12, 2014)."Independent challenger to Tim Scott fails to get on the ballot" .The Post and Courier the original on August 21, 2014. RetrievedAugust 19, 2014 . ^ Governor Sarah Palin’s First Endorsement of 2014: Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina | A Time For Choosing ^ "American Conservative Union PAC Endorses Senator Tim Scott" . Tim Scott for Senate. May 5, 2014. RetrievedAugust 22, 2014 .^ Glueck, Katie (March 17, 2014)."FreedomWorks backs Ted Yoho, Tim Scott, Mark Sanford" .Politico . RetrievedAugust 22, 2014 . ^ York, Frank (January 7, 2014)."GING-PAC Endorses Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) For 2014!" . GING-PAC. Archived fromthe original on August 26, 2014. RetrievedAugust 22, 2014 . ^ "Chamber of Commerce Endorses Senator Tim Scott" . Tim Scott for Senate. January 30, 2014. RetrievedAugust 22, 2014 .^ "SC AFL-CIO Endorses Candidates For the US House and Senate" . AFL-CIO. 2014. Archived fromthe original on October 30, 2014. RetrievedOctober 29, 2014 .^ "Election 2014: Boilermakers recommend candidates" . Boilermakers. 2014. RetrievedOctober 29, 2014 .^ "Official UAW Endorsements- South Carolina" . UAW. 2014. Archived fromthe original on October 30, 2014. RetrievedOctober 29, 2014 .^ "Breaking News: The Centrist Project Voice Endorses a Wide Portfolio of Moderate Candidates" . The Centrist Project. July 9, 2014. RetrievedAugust 22, 2014 .^ "2014 Senate Race Ratings for November 3, 2014" .The Cook Political Report . RetrievedSeptember 20, 2018 .^ "The Crystal Ball's Final 2014 Picks" .Sabato's Crystal Ball . RetrievedSeptember 20, 2018 .^ "2014 Senate Ratings" .Senate Ratings . The Rothenberg Political Report. RetrievedSeptember 20, 2018 .^ "2014 Elections Map - Battle for the Senate 2014" . Real Clear Politics. RetrievedSeptember 20, 2018 .^ Rasmussen Reports ^ CBS News/NYT/YouGov ^ CBS News/NYT/YouGov ^ Winthrop University ^ Jill Bossi (AP) 1.8%, Other 0.1% ^a b CBS News/NYT/YouGov ^ "2014 South Carolina Special U.S Senate Election Results" .
Official campaign websites (archived)
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