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by WILL FOLKS
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In the current election cycle, most of the drama related to South Carolina lieutenant governors has been on the Republican side of the ledger.
And there’s been plenty of it, too…
For starters, the Palmetto State’s sitting lieutenant governor – Ohio-born Pamela Evette – is one of two finalists for the GOP gubernatorial nomination (although polls and prediction markets show her facing an uphill climb against four-term attorney general Alan Wilson).
One of the reasons Evette is languishing? Her campaign’s atrocious handling of what should have been its high-water mark… the endorsement of U.S. president of Donald Trump.
In giving his “complete and total” endorsement of Evette three weeks ago – a bet he has since hedged via a “co-endorsement” of Wilson – Trump referenced South Carolina’s No. 2 executive gig, namely her rumored selection of Columbia, S.C. attorney Henry McMaster Jr. as the state’s next lieutenant governor.
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“A BIG added plus for Pam is that, I hear, Henry McMaster, Jr., the brilliant and very competent son of Henry and Peggy, will be running with her as the next lieutenant governor,” Trump wrote.
Trump’s reference to this largely ceremonial position ignited a firestorm – invoking allegations of a “corrupt bargain” involving McMaster Jr.’s father, S.C. governor Henry McMaster. As details of the alleged quid pro quo emerged, the story became less about Trump endorsing Evette – and more about the backroom deals reportedly struck to secure his support.
With the sharks circling, McMaster Jr. was forced to belatedly withdraw his name from consideration – which created an entirely new set of headaches for Evette.
Bottom line? It was a ton of negative press for a largely inconsequential position… which served to simultaneously highlight the inconsequentiality of the position Evette had held for the past eight years.
As fate and/or irony would have it, Evette was the first person in South Carolina history to become lieutenant governor as part of a two-candidate “ticket.” Prior to the 2018 election cycle – in which she ran alongside McMaster Sr. – lieutenant governors in the Palmetto State were elected independently.
With Wilson expected to cruise to victory in the GOP runoff election tomorrow (Tuesday, June 23, 2026), the lieutenant gubernatorial drama on the Republican side should be over. After all, Wilson wisely tapped S.C. senator Mike Reichenbach as his No. 2 back in January – a choice that has earned rave reviews and given the GOP frontrunner a capable surrogate on the campaign trail.
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RELATED | POLITICAL PANDERING?
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The lingering question? Who Democrats will tap as their No. 2…
Prior to his landslide primary victory, state representative Jermaine Johnson – the newly minted Democrat gubernatorial nominee – was reportedly mulling whether to proceed with a rare “unity ticket,” i.e. choosing a nominee from his rival party to serve as lieutenant governor. Unlike conventional Democrat candidates, Johnson has no loyalty to his party’s status quo. In fact, Democrats tried to boot him from the ballot to make way for their preferred choice, wealthy Upstate businessman William M. “Billy” Webster IV.
Johnson resisted, though – and decisively beat back his own party’s best attempt to defeat him at the ballot box.
Webster spent more than $2 million on broadcast, cable, satellite and streaming advertisements during the Democrat primary – only to garner 110,303 votes (or 29.65% of the primary electorate).
On a shoestring budget, Johnson steamrolled him (and wealthy Charleston, S.C. trial lawyer Mullins McLeod) to win the Democrat nomination on the first ballot. Firmly in possession of a mandate from his party’s voters – and owing his party nothing – Johnson is in the unique position of being able to potentially pursue a “unity ticket” should he choose to do so.
Assuming that’s the direction in which he wants to go, whom would he choose?
Prior to the primary, sources familiar with his thinking indicated Johnson was eyeing former state senator Katrina Shealy of Red Bank, S.C. as a possible running mate.
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Shealy, 71, of Columbia, S.C., was defeated during the 2024 election after bucking the GOP party line on the issue of abortion. An outspoken, centrist Republican – she served three terms in the S.C. Senate. Since her defeat, she has maintained a visible role in Palmetto politics via her blog, While I Breathe.
Shealy declined to discuss the speculation regarding her potential inclusion on a Democrat ticket, telling us she believed Johnson needed to focus on doing what was best for his party.
“He is a great guy but I think he needs to do what is best for the Democrat ticket and what helps him in November,” Shealy told us. “He needs a moderate candidate that will work like he does for all the people of South Carolina. There are advantages and disadvantages of Jermaine picking someone not affiliated with the Democrat party. He has a little while to think about that.”
According to our sources, Johnson is facing intense pressure – including steady strong-arming from some of the same interests who tried to boot him from the ballot – to tap his former rival, Webster, as his lieutenant gubernatorial pick. Such a move, these sources say, would unite black voters who supported Johnson with white voters who backed Webster.
Would such a selection be enough to move the needle in a general election against a Republican ticket? In a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat to any statewide office in two decades? Probably not… but Democrats we’ve spoken with insist a “unity ticket” including a Republican lieutenant governor is a non-starter.
“The only unity ticket he needs to concern himself with is one that unites the Democratic party,” a veteran Democrat strategist told us.
Johnson has yet to give any indication as to his thinking on the subject of a lieutenant gubernatorial nominee, but we’ve reached out to him to get this thoughts. As soon as we hear back, we’ll be sure to let our audience know what he had to say.
Johnson awaits the winner of the GOP runoff election between Wilson and Evette, whom he will face on November 3, 2026. No Democrat has won the governor’s race since 1998, when former governor Jim Hodges defeated first-term incumbent David Beasley in a race dominated by the Confederate battle flag. Republicans won the three gubernatorial elections before Hodges’ surprise win, and have won the six elections since – meaning the GOP has occupied the governor’s office for 36 of the last 40 years.
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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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