by WILL FOLKS
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Touting the elimination of the Palmetto State’s income tax, massive infrastructure overhauls and reforms to a notoriously uneven judicial system, four-term Republican attorney general Alan Wilson claimed a closer-than-expected victory in South Carolina’s gubernatorial election on Tuesday evening (November 3, 2026).
With 98% of precincts reporting, Wilson led Democrat state representative Jermaine Johnson – receiving 1,046,012 votes (or 51.7% of the ballots counted). Johnson, who was dramatically outspent in the race, received 950,396 votes (or 47% of the ballots counted).
“This election is a turning point in South Carolina history,” Wilson said, seeming to acknowledge the marked shift in the mood of the electorate from previous cycles that saw dominant GOP victories. “No more doing things the same way.”
Wilson’s win came five months after the state’s top prosecutor won a resounding victory in a contentious Republican primary – besting multiple well-known and well-funded opponents. If that wasn’t sufficiently impressive, he followed it up by somehow managing to unify a badly divided party behind his candidacy.
Wilson needed every one of those GOP votes as South Carolina Republicans suffered through their worst election in decades – including the historic loss of a U.S. Senate seat that had been in GOP hands for decades.
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Wilson becomes the 118th post-colonial governor of South Carolina – a state which has struggled to keep pace with national and regional peers on multiple key metrics of prosperity, public safety and effective, efficient governance.
Unlike many candidates running this cycle, Wilson spoke directly to these concerns – running an outward-facing campaign geared around families and small businesses struggling amid soaring prices.
He also told FITSNews during an election eve interview that momentum for his agenda was building…
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??#Crossroads2026 On the eve of the election, @AGAlanWilson says he’s had conversations with "influence aggregators" in the S.C. General Assembly who support his bid to eliminate the income tax. Full interview ?… https://t.co/N8uK9yQnEG https://t.co/EhvAdv99pu
— FITSNews (@fitsnews) November 3, 2026
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This is a developing story… stay tuned for updates.
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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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