SC Senate kills congressional redistricting bill as early primary votes surge

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — In a vote of 26 to 18, the South Carolina Senate voted to effectively kill the contentious bill on congressional redistricting.

The effort became bipartisan — with a number of Republican lawmakers joining Democrats following large turnout Tuesday morning for early voting.

Senators again took up debate on congressional redistricting at 11 a.m. — and by 2 o’clock the fight was over — with 12 Republicans joining Democrats to kill the bill’s chances of passing.

Two staunch Republicans — Senator Tom Davis, and Senator Richard Cash decided to vote no on the bill.

Speaking to fellow Senators, Cash said he’s cast at least five votes to move the bill forward, but with the debate continuing as Tuesday’s early voting began, he changed his mind.

“South Carolina citizens are going to the polls today. And neither my conscience nor my common sense will allow me to stop an election that is already underway,” says Cash.

“I don’t know how anybody with a straight face in this chamber can vote for a map with that absence of diligence, I really don’t. Especially an obligation as important as redistricting,” says Davis.

According to the SC Election Commission, over 32,000 people had already cast their ballots in early voting by one p.m. — that number growing to over 55,000 by 5 p.m.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, who has opposed the bill from the beginning — recently cited mistakes in the new map– saying it included precincts that no longer exist.

“It was pretty clear to me where this was probably gonna head,” Massey says, adding that he does not consider the decision a rebuke on President Trump, who called for SC to redistrict.

“The fact that people are lining up to vote today and you’re gonna have more tomorrow, all those things were weighing heavily on republican senators. This was not intended as a rebuke to the president or the White House at all,” says Massey.

Governor Henry McMaster weighed in on the Senate’s decision, saying in a statement, “President Trump needs a Republican Congress to continue pursuing conservative policies that make our nation stronger. I am confident that one day South Carolina’s congressional delegation will be completely Republican. I am disappointed that day has not yet come,” said Governor Henry McMaster. “With the Senate’s vote today, it is clear that South Carolina will not have a new congressional map for the 2026 election. It is time for South Carolinians to go vote confidently in a safe and secure election for the June 9 primary. And it is time for the General Assembly to return in its extra session to pass a budget for the coming fiscal year. As in all elections, I encourage our citizens to exercise their precious right to vote, especially during this 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.”

Congressman Jim Clyburn also weighed in on Tuesday’s decision, saying on X, “Two years ago, the United States Supreme Court issued a ruling that said South Carolina’s 6th Congressional District was in fact constitutional. The White House wanted to draw a new district that would be 7-0. We have someone in the White House that wants Republicans to ignore the Constitutional principles for which this current map was drawn. A critical number of Republicans did not believe in putting a man over the law. Today, members of the South Carolina State Senate stood up for the constitutional principles that they say they believe in.”

Senate Democrats held a press conference immediately following the decision.

“If you go back in history, we’re just generally not a state that gets pushed around by Washington and this is another example of that,” says Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto.

“This did not happen because of us, it happened because of you. It happened because the voters of SC said, ‘I want my voice to be heard,'” says Senator Tameika Isaac Devine.

ABC Columbia’s Lee Williams spoke with Democratic Senator Deon Tedder and Democratic Senator Russell Ott about why they believe today is a win for South Carolinians.

“Most importantly, the message to every South Carolinian that woke up this morning, that stood in line, that cast their vote on the first day of early voting, to tell them and reassure them that their voice matters and their vote counts,” says Tedder.

“It sends a message that SC is gonna continue to make decisions for SC. And that’s what I’m very proud of. I’m very proud that we did that in a bipartisan way today, because it couldn’t have been done…we couldn’t have stopped it only with Republicans, and we couldn’t have stopped it only with Democrats,” says Ott.

Early voting continues through June 5th, and primaries are still set for June 9th.