List of lieutenant governors of South Carolina

The lieutenant governor of South Carolina is the second-in-command to the governor of South Carolina. This is a list of lieutenant governors of the U.S. state of South Carolina, 1730 to present.^[1]^[2]

Royal period (1719–1776)

The lieutenant governor position was created by the British government under the control of the Board of Trade in 1729 for a term beginning on January 1, 1730. Prior to that, the Governor appointed a deputy governor to act in his stead during his absence. There were only three lieutenant governors during the Royal period and two were father and son.

Lieutenant governors of South Carolina (1730 to 1776)
No.	Lieutenant Governor	Term in office	Governor	Notes	Monarch
1	Thomas Broughton	January 1, 1730 – November 22, 1737	Arthur Middleton	Died in office	George II
1	Thomas Broughton	January 1, 1730 – November 22, 1737	Robert Johnson	Died in office
2	William Bull I	December 23, 1738 – March 21, 1755	James Glen	Died in office
3	William Bull II	March 21, 1755 – March 26, 1776	James Glen	Son of his predecessor Died in office
			William Lyttelton		George III
			Thomas Boone
			Lord Charles Montagu
			Lord William Campbell

Statehood period (1776–present)

Vice presidents under the Constitution of 1776

The General Assembly chose the vice president for a term of two years.

Parties

No party (2)

Vice presidents of the State of South Carolina (1776 to 1779)
No.		Party	Term in office		Notes
4	Henry Laurens	Independent	March 26, 1776 – January 10, 1777	John Rutledge	Officially titled "Vice President"
Vacant			until June 24, 1777
5	James Parsons	Independent	June 24, 1777 – January 9, 1779		Officially titled "Vice President"
5	James Parsons	Independent	June 24, 1777 – January 9, 1779	Rawlins Lowndes	Officially titled "Vice President"

Lieutenant governors in early and antebellum America

The General Assembly chose the lieutenant governor for a term of two years.

Parties

No party (6) Federalist (5) Democratic-Republican (16) Nullifier (Democratic) (3) Democratic (16)

Lieutenant governors of the State of South Carolina (1779 to 1865)
No.	Image		Party	Term in office		Notes
6		Thomas Bee	Independent	January 9, 1779 – January 24, 1780	John Rutledge
7		Christopher Gadsden	Independent	January 24, 1780 – January 31, 1782	John Rutledge
8		Richard Hutson	Independent	January 31, 1782 – February 4, 1783	John Mathews
9		Richard Beresford	Independent	February 4, 1783 – March 15, 1783	Benjamin Guerard	Shortest term (39 days) Resigned^[a]
-	Vacant			until February 16, 1784
10		William Moultrie	Independent	February 16, 1784 – February 11, 1785
11		Charles Drayton	Independent	February 11, 1785 – February 20, 1787	William Moultrie
12		Thomas Gadsden	Federalist	February 20, 1787 – January 26, 1789	Thomas Pinckney
13		Alexander Gillon	Federalist	January 26, 1789 – February 15, 1791	Charles Pinckney
14		Isaac Holmes	Federalist	February 15, 1791 – December 5, 1792	Charles Pinckney
15		James Ladson	Federalist	December 5, 1792 – December 17, 1794	William Moultrie
16		Lewis Morris	Federalist	December 17, 1794 – December 8, 1796	Arnoldus Vanderhorst
17		Robert Anderson	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1796 – December 18, 1798	Charles Pinckney
18		John Drayton	Democratic-Republican	December 18, 1798 – January 23, 1800	Edward Rutledge	Succeeded to governorship^[b]
-	Vacant			until December 4, 1800
19		Richard Winn	Democratic-Republican	December 4, 1800 – December 8, 1802	John Drayton
20		Ezekiel Pickens	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1802 – December 7, 1804	James Burchill Richardson
21		Thomas Sumter Jr.	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1804 – December 9, 1806	Paul Hamilton
22		John Hopkins	Democratic-Republican	December 9, 1806 – December 10, 1808	Charles Pinckney
23		Frederick Nance	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1808 – December 8, 1810	John Drayton
24		Samuel Farrow	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1810 – December 10, 1812	Henry Middleton
25		Eldred Simkins	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1812 – December 10, 1814	Joseph Alston
26		Robert Creswell	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1814 – December 5, 1816	David Rogerson Williams
27		John A. Cuthbert	Democratic-Republican	December 5, 1816 – December 8, 1818	Andrew Pickens
28		William Youngblood	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1818 – December 7, 1820	John Geddes
29		William Pinckney	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1820 – December 7, 1822	Thomas Bennett Jr.
30		Henry Bradley	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1822 – December 3, 1824	John Lyde Wilson
31		William Bull	Democratic-Republican	December 3, 1824 – December 9, 1826	Richard Irvine Manning I
32		James Witherspoon	Democratic-Republican	December 9, 1826 – December 10, 1828	John Taylor
33		Thomas Williams	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 10, 1828 – December 9, 1830	Stephen Decatur Miller
34		Patrick Noble	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 9, 1830 – December 10, 1832	James Hamilton Jr.
35		Charles Cotesworth Pinckney II	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 10, 1832 – December 9, 1834	Robert Young Hayne
36		Whitemarsh B. Seabrook	Democratic	December 9, 1834 – December 10, 1836	George McDuffie
37		William DuBose	Democratic	December 10, 1836 – December 7, 1838	Pierce Mason Butler
38		Barnabas Kelet Henagan	Democratic	December 7, 1838 – April 7, 1840	Patrick Noble	Succeeded to governorship^[c]
-	Vacant			until December 9, 1840
39		William K. Clowney	Democratic	December 9, 1840 – December 8, 1842	John Peter Richardson II
40		Isaac Donnom Witherspoon	Democratic	December 8, 1842 – December 7, 1844	James Henry Hammond
41		J.F. Ervin	Democratic	December 7, 1844 – December 7, 1846	William Aiken
42		William Cain	Democratic	December 8, 1846 – December 12, 1848	David Johnson
43		William Henry Gist	Democratic	December 12, 1848 – December 13, 1850	Whitemarsh B. Seabrook
44		Joshua John Ward	Democratic	December 13, 1850 – December 9, 1852	John Hugh Means
45		James Irby	Democratic	December 9, 1852 – December 11, 1854	John Lawrence Manning
46		Richard de Treville	Democratic	December 11, 1854 – December 9, 1856	James Hopkins Adams
47		Gabriel Cannon	Democratic	December 9, 1856 – December 10, 1858	Robert F.W. Allston
48		M. E. Carn	Democratic	December 10, 1858 – December 14, 1860	William Henry Gist
49		William Harllee	Confederate Democratic	December 14, 1860 – December 17, 1862	Francis Wilkinson Pickens
50		Plowden Weston	Confederate Democratic	December 17, 1862 – January 25, 1864	Milledge Luke Bonham	Died in office^[d]
-	Vacant			until December 18, 1864
51		Robert McCaw	Confederate Democratic	December 18, 1864 – May 25, 1865	Andrew Gordon Magrath	Overthrown by Union Army at the end of the Civil War; government disestablished.
-	Office abolished until government reinstated under new constitution November 30, 1865

Lieutenant governors post-Civil War through the present

First Constitution of South Carolina to provide for the direct election of the lieutenant governor.

2-year term, 1868-1927, no limit
4-year term, 1927–present, no limit

Legend: Democratic (32) Republican (9) No party (1)

Lieutenant governors of the State of South Carolina (1865 to 1868)
No.	Image		Party	Term in office	Election		Notes
52		William Porter	Independent	November 30, 1865 – July 6, 1868	1865	James Lawrence Orr	First popularly elected lieutenant governor
53		Lemuel Boozer	Republican	July 6, 1868 – December 3, 1870	1868	Robert Kingston Scott
54		Alonzo J. Ransier	Republican	December 3, 1870 – December 7, 1872	1870	Robert Kingston Scott	First black lieutenant governor
55		Richard Howell Gleaves	Republican	December 7, 1872 – December 14, 1876	1872	Franklin J. Moses, Jr.	Second black lieutenant governor Haitian-American Lost reelection^[e]^[3]
55		Richard Howell Gleaves	Republican	December 7, 1872 – December 14, 1876	1874	Daniel Henry Chamberlain
-	Disputed				Disputed between Gleaves and William Dunlap Simpson. Two governments were formed during this time. Main article: Disputed government of South Carolina of 1876-77
56		William Dunlap Simpson	Democratic	December 14, 1876 – February 26, 1879	1876	Wade Hampton III	Succeeded to governorship^[f]
56		William Dunlap Simpson	Democratic	December 14, 1876 – February 26, 1879	1878	Wade Hampton III	Succeeded to governorship^[f]
-	Vacant			until November 30, 1880
57		John D. Kennedy	Democratic	November 30, 1880 – December 1, 1882	1880	Johnson Hagood
58		John Calhoun Sheppard	Democratic	December 1, 1882 – July 10, 1886	1882	Hugh Smith Thompson	Succeeded to governorship^[g]
58		John Calhoun Sheppard	Democratic	December 1, 1882 – July 10, 1886	1884	Hugh Smith Thompson	Succeeded to governorship^[g]
-	Vacant			until November 30, 1886
59		William L. Mauldin	Democratic	December 30, 1886 – December 4, 1890	1886	Hugh Smith Thompson
59		William L. Mauldin	Democratic	December 30, 1886 – December 4, 1890	1888	Hugh Smith Thompson
60		Eugene B. Gary	Democratic	December 4, 1890 – December 22, 1893	1890	Benjamin Tillman	Resigned^[h]
60		Eugene B. Gary	Democratic	December 4, 1890 – December 22, 1893	1892		Resigned^[h]
61		Washington H. Timmerman	Democratic	December 22, 1893 – January 18, 1897	1892
61		Washington H. Timmerman	Democratic	December 22, 1893 – January 18, 1897	1894	John Gary Evans
62		Miles Benjamin McSweeney	Democratic	January 18, 1897 – June 2, 1899	1896	William Haselden Ellerbe	Succeeded to governorship^[i]
62		Miles Benjamin McSweeney	Democratic	January 18, 1897 – June 2, 1899	1898	William Haselden Ellerbe	Succeeded to governorship^[i]
63		Robert B. Scarborough	Democratic	June 2, 1899 – January 15, 1901	1898	Miles Benjamin McSweeney	Not elected
64		James Tillman	Democratic	January 15, 1901 – January 20, 1903	1900	Miles Benjamin McSweeney
65		John Sloan	Democratic	January 20, 1903 – January 15, 1907	1902	Duncan Clinch Heyward
65		John Sloan	Democratic	January 20, 1903 – January 15, 1907	1904	Duncan Clinch Heyward
66		Thomas Gordon McLeod	Democratic	January 15, 1907 – January 17, 1911	1906	Martin Frederick Ansel
66		Thomas Gordon McLeod	Democratic	January 15, 1907 – January 17, 1911	1908	Martin Frederick Ansel
67		Charles Aurelius Smith	Democratic	January 17, 1911 – January 14, 1915	1910	Coleman Livingston Blease	Succeeded to governorship^[j]
67		Charles Aurelius Smith	Democratic	January 17, 1911 – January 14, 1915	1912	Coleman Livingston Blease	Succeeded to governorship^[j]
-	Vacant			until January 19, 1915
68		Andrew Bethea	Democratic	January 19, 1915 – January 21, 1919	1914	Richard Irvine Manning III
68		Andrew Bethea	Democratic	January 19, 1915 – January 21, 1919	1916	Richard Irvine Manning III
69		Junius T. Liles	Democratic	January 21, 1919 – January 18, 1921	1918	Robert Archer Cooper
70		Wilson Godfrey Harvey	Democratic	January 18, 1921 – May 20, 1922	1920	Robert Archer Cooper	Succeeded to governorship^[k]
-	Vacant			until January 16, 1923
71		E. B. Jackson	Democratic	January 16, 1923 – January 18, 1927	1922	Thomas Gordon McLeod
71		E. B. Jackson	Democratic	January 16, 1923 – January 18, 1927	1924	Thomas Gordon McLeod
72		Thomas Bothwell Butler	Democratic	January 18, 1927 – January 5, 1931^[4]	1926	John Gardiner Richards, Jr.	First elected to four-year term Died in office
-	Vacant			until January 20, 1931
73		James O. Sheppard	Democratic	January 20, 1931 – January 15, 1935	1930	Ibra Charles Blackwood
74		Joseph Emile Harley	Democratic	January 15, 1935 – November 4, 1941	1934	Olin D. Johnston	Succeeded to governorship^[l]
74		Joseph Emile Harley	Democratic	January 15, 1935 – November 4, 1941	1938	Burnet R. Maybank	Succeeded to governorship^[l]
-	Vacant			until January 19, 1943
75		Ransome Judson Williams	Democratic	January 19, 1943 – January 2, 1945	1942	Olin D. Johnston	Succeeded to governorship^[m]
-	Vacant			until January 21, 1947
76		George Bell Timmerman, Jr.	Democratic	January 21, 1947 – January 18, 1955	1946	Strom Thurmond
76		George Bell Timmerman, Jr.	Democratic	January 21, 1947 – January 18, 1955	1950	James F. Byrnes
77		Fritz Hollings	Democratic	January 18, 1955 – January 20, 1959	1954	George Bell Timmerman, Jr.
78		Burnet R. Maybank Jr.	Democratic	January 20, 1959 – January 15, 1963	1958	Fritz Hollings
79		Robert Evander McNair	Democratic	January 15, 1963 – April 22, 1965	1962	Donald S. Russell	Succeeded to governorship^[n]
-	Vacant			until January 17, 1967
80		John C. West	Democratic	January 17, 1967 – January 19, 1971	1966	Robert Evander McNair
81		Earle Morris, Jr.	Democratic	January 19, 1971 – January 21, 1975	1970	John C. West
82		W. Brantley Harvey, Jr.	Democratic	January 21, 1975 – January 10, 1979	1974	James B. Edwards
83		Nancy Stevenson	Democratic	January 10, 1979 – January 12, 1983	1978	Richard Riley	First female lieutenant governor
84		Michael R. Daniel	Democratic	January 12, 1983 – January 14, 1987	1982	Richard Riley
85		Nick Theodore	Democratic	January 14, 1987 – January 11, 1995	1986	Carroll A. Campbell, Jr.
85		Nick Theodore	Democratic	January 14, 1987 – January 11, 1995	1990	Carroll A. Campbell, Jr.
86		Bob Peeler	Republican	January 11, 1995 – January 15, 2003	1994	David Beasley
86		Bob Peeler	Republican	January 11, 1995 – January 15, 2003	1998	Jim Hodges
87		André Bauer	Republican	January 15, 2003 – January 12, 2011	2002	Mark Sanford
87		André Bauer	Republican	January 15, 2003 – January 12, 2011	2006	Mark Sanford
88		Ken Ard	Republican	January 12, 2011 – March 9, 2012	2010	Nikki Haley	Resigned^[o]
-	Vacant			until March 13, 2012
89		Glenn F. McConnell	Republican	March 13, 2012 – June 18, 2014			Resigned^[p]
90		Yancey McGill^[q]	Democratic	June 18, 2014 – January 14, 2015
91		Henry McMaster	Republican	January 14, 2015 – January 24, 2017	2014		Succeeded to governorship^[r]
-	Vacant			until January 25, 2017
92		Kevin L. Bryant	Republican	January 25, 2017 – January 9, 2019		Henry McMaster
93		Pamela Evette	Republican	January 9, 2019 – Present	2018		First elected on same ticket as governor^[5]
93		Pamela Evette	Republican	January 9, 2019 – Present	2022		First elected on same ticket as governor^[5]

Notes

^ Resigned after elected to the Congress of the Confederation.
^ Succeeded to the governorship when Governor John Drayton died in office.
^ Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Patrick Noble died in office.
^ Died of tuberculosis
^ Gleaves lost by 359 votes. Initially, the Republicans claimed that the Democrats committed voter fraud and that their majority was invalid. However, Republicans lost electoral support and were forced to concede. Gleaves, by all accounts of sources, did not refuse to leave office as Governor Daniel Henry Chamberlain did.
^ Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Wade Hampton III resigned to become a U.S. Senator
^ Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Hugh Thompson resigned to become the assistant Secretary of the Treasury under the Grover Cleveland administration.
^ Resigned to take position of associate justice on the South Carolina Supreme Court.
^ Succeeded to governorship when Governor William Ellerbe died in office.
^ Succeeded to governorship for five days when Governor Coleman Blease resigned to avoid attending the innaguration of his successor
^ Succeeded to governorship when Governor Robert Cooper resigned to take a position on the Federal Farm Loan Board.
^ Succeeded to governorship when Governor Burnet Maybank resigned to become a United States senator.
^ Succeeded to governorship when Governor Olin Johnston resigned to become a United States senator.
^ Succeeded to governorship when Governor Donald Russell resigned to become a United States senator.
^ Resigned after the South Carolina ethics commission charged him with 69 counts of using campaign money for personal use and 23 counts of failing to disclose campaign expenses during the 2010 election for lieutenant governor.
^ Resigned to become the president of the College of Charleston.
^ McGill was a Democrat while lieutenant governor, but he switched parties after leaving office.
^ Succeeded to the governorship after Governor Nikki Haley resigned to become the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

References

^ "South Carolina Lieutenant Governors 1730 to Present". Carolana. n.d. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
^ Salley, A.S. (n.d.). "Lieutenant Governors of South Carolina" (PDF). State of South Carolina. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 30, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
^ Reports of Committees of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Columbia: South Carolina Government. 1876. p. 125.
^ "The Greenville News Greenville, South Carolina · Tuesday, January 06, 1931". www.newspapers.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
^ "SC voters in favor of governor-lieutenant governor ticket". wmbfnews.com. Retrieved October 31, 2013.

External links

[3] Resigned after elected to the Congress of the Confederation.

[4] Succeeded to the governorship when Governor John Drayton died in office.

[5] Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Patrick Noble died in office.

[6] Died of tuberculosis

[7] Gleaves lost by 359 votes. Initially, the Republicans claimed that the Democrats committed voter fraud and that their majority was invalid. However, Republicans lost electoral support and were forced to concede. Gleaves, by all accounts of sources, did not refuse to leave office as Governor Daniel Henry Chamberlain did.

[9] Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Wade Hampton III resigned to become a U.S. Senator

[10] Succeeded to the governorship when Governor Hugh Thompson resigned to become the assistant Secretary of the Treasury under the Grover Cleveland administration.

[11] Resigned to take position of associate justice on the South Carolina Supreme Court.

[12] Succeeded to governorship when Governor William Ellerbe died in office.

[13] Succeeded to governorship for five days when Governor Coleman Blease resigned to avoid attending the innaguration of his successor

[14] Succeeded to governorship when Governor Robert Cooper resigned to take a position on the Federal Farm Loan Board.

[16] Succeeded to governorship when Governor Burnet Maybank resigned to become a United States senator.

[17] Succeeded to governorship when Governor Olin Johnston resigned to become a United States senator.

[18] Succeeded to governorship when Governor Donald Russell resigned to become a United States senator.

[19] Resigned after the South Carolina ethics commission charged him with 69 counts of using campaign money for personal use and 23 counts of failing to disclose campaign expenses during the 2010 election for lieutenant governor.

[20] Resigned to become the president of the College of Charleston.

[21] McGill was a Democrat while lieutenant governor, but he switched parties after leaving office.

[22] Succeeded to the governorship after Governor Nikki Haley resigned to become the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

[1] "South Carolina Lieutenant Governors 1730 to Present". Carolana. n.d. Retrieved June 11, 2020.

[2] Salley, A.S. (n.d.). "Lieutenant Governors of South Carolina" (PDF). State of South Carolina. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 30, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2020.

[8] Reports of Committees of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Columbia: South Carolina Government. 1876. p. 125.

[15] "The Greenville News Greenville, South Carolina · Tuesday, January 06, 1931". www.newspapers.com. Retrieved May 16, 2023.

[23] "SC voters in favor of governor-lieutenant governor ticket". wmbfnews.com. Retrieved October 31, 2013.

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v t e United States lieutenant governors by political division
States	Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California list Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Jersey New Mexico New York list North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina list South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin
Insular areas	American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands U.S. Virgin Islands
Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Wyoming, and Puerto Rico do not have lieutenant governors.