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by WILL FOLKS
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The South Carolina AFL-CIO – which purports to represent thousands of workers across the Palmetto State – has endorsed state representative Jermaine Johnson of Hopkins, S.C. in his long-shot bid for governor in 2026.
“Jermaine Johnson has shown up for working people not just with his votes but with his presence,” said Boris Gibson, the union’s leader. “He listens to the workers dealing with unfair wages and unsafe conditions, and he fights for livable wages, the right to organize and a fair economy. We are proud to stand with him.”
Gibson said Johnson has been a “consistent partner” with the union as it purports to represent workers “struggling with stagnant pay and limited protections.”
“Every step of my life has shown me what working people are up against,”Johnson said in a statement released by the union. “South Carolina deserves a governor who will fight for better pay, safer workplaces and a fair shot for every family. I am honored to have the AFL-CIO standing with us.”
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Johnson, 39, is running against Charleston, S.C. trial lawyer Mullins McLeod for the Democrat gubernatorial nomination – a title which, for the past quarter century anyway, has been a one-way ticket to ignominious defeat in the Palmetto State’s quadrennial November statewide elections.
No Democrat has won a statewide election in South Carolina since 2006 – and no Democrat has won a governor’s race since 1998. The last Democrat gubernatorial nominee, former U.S. congressman Joe Cunningham, received an abysmal 40.67% of the vote in 2022.
Johnson is hoping to break a 28-year streak of futility for Democrats – but it’s doubtful his union support will help him (even as the AFL-CIO vowed to activate its “voter outreach and grassroots organizing” efforts on his behalf).
According to the latest data (.pdf) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), South Carolina ranked next-to-last nationally in the percentage of its workforce that was unionized last year (2.8%). However, that number represents a significant uptick from 2023 – a year in which only 2.3% of the state’s workforce was unionized.
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Status quo GOP governor Henry McMaster is term-limited from running for reelection, and the race to succeed him has prompted a veritable cattle call on the Republican side of the ledger. Four-term attorney general Alan Wilson, lieutenant governor Pamela Evette, first district congresswoman Nancy Mace, fifth district congressman Ralph Norman and state senator Josh Kimbrell are all seeking the GOP gubernatorial nomination.
Recent polling shows Wilson leading the field, although the race is exceedingly fluid.
Candidates will formally file paperwork to seek statewide offices between March 15-30, 2026, with partisan primary elections scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2026. In the event no candidate wins a majority of votes on the first ballot, a head-to-head runoff election between the top two vote-getters would be held two weeks later (on June 23, 2026).
The general election will be held on November 3, 2026.
Count on FITSNews to keep our audience apprised of pertinent developments in the race as part of our ongoing Crossroads 2026 coverage.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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