South Carolina's 7th congressional district

South Carolina's 7th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in South Carolina, established in 2011 following apportionment of another seat to the state in the redistricting cycle following the 2010 census. It is located in the Pee Dee region, and includes all of Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Georgetown, Horry, Marion, and Marlboro Counties and most of Florence County. The district is represented by Republican Russell Fry who was elected in 2022 and took office on January 3, 2023.

History The 7th congressional district of South Carolina existed in the 19th century, but was eliminated in 1853 as a result of the 1850 census. After the 1880 census, Congress apportioned the state another seat, and the state legislature re-established the district.

By that time, the Reconstruction era had ended and the state legislature was controlled by Democrats, who wrested control by a mixture of violence and fraud. They defined the boundaries of the 7th district, which was called the "shoestring district" because of its long, narrow shape that included many black precincts. In 1892 and 1894 the majority-black voters of the district elected George W. Murray to Congress; he was the only African American to serve in Congress in those sessions and, following disfranchisement and demographic changes, the last elected from the state until Jim Clyburn in 1992.

In 1895, the Democrat-dominated state legislature passed a new constitution, disfranchising black voters by changes to voter registration and electoral rules that were applied against them in a discriminatory way. For decades after 1896, only white Democrats were elected to Congress from the state. (Such disfranchisement occurred among all the states of the former Confederacy, and their use of poll taxes, literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and white primaries survived several US Supreme Court challenges.)

During the first half of the 20th century, 6.5 million blacks in total left South Carolina and other southern states in the Great Migration to the North, Midwest and West. Following cumulative declines in state population, after the 1930 census, South Carolina lost a seat and the 7th district was eliminated in redistricting. It was last represented by Democrat Hampton P. Fulmer, who was redistricted into the 2nd district.

South Carolina had only six districts for the next 80 years. African Americans were effectively barred from voting until after passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Increases in population led to the state's receiving another congressional seat in the redistricting cycle following the 2010 census.

The 7th district is located in the rapidly developing area of northeastern South Carolina, including the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area (the Grand Strand) and the Pee Dee region. It is a white-majority district and its voters elected Republican Tom Rice as US Representative from the district in 2012; he took office in January 2013, when the 113th Congress convened. Due almost entirely to the presence of heavily Republican Horry County, which has as many people as the rest of the district combined, it tilts Republican.

The district boundaries are roughly similar to the configuration of the 6th congressional district before it was reconfigured after the 1990 census as a black-majority district.

Composition For the 118th and successive Congresses (based on redistricting following the 2020 census), the district contains all or portions of the following counties and communities:https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/cong_dist/cd118/cd_based/ST45/CD118_SC07.pdf

Chesterfield County (9)

All 9 communities

Darlington County (8)

All 8 communities

Dillon County (6)

All 6 communities

Florence County (9)

Coward, Danwood, Florence, Johnsonville, Olanta, Pamplico, Scranton (part; also 6th), Timmonsville, Quinby

Georgetown County (7)

All 7 communities

Horry County (20)

All 20 communities

Marion County (8)

All 8 communities

Marlboro County (7)

All 7 communities

Recent election results from statewide races Year Office Results2008 PresidentMcCain 53% - 45%2012 PresidentRomney 55% - 45%2016 PresidentTrump 58% - 39% SenateScott 61% - 37%2018 GovernorMcMaster 57% - 43% Secretary of StateHammond 59% - 41% TreasurerLoftis 58% - 40% Attorney GeneralWilson 58% - 41%2020 PresidentTrump 59% - 40% SenateGraham 58% - 41%2022 SenateScott 67% - 33% GovernorMcMaster 63% - 36% Secretary of StateHammond 67% - 33%2024 PresidentTrump 63% - 36%

List of members representing the district Member Party Years Congress Electoral history District location District established March 4, 1803 Thomas Moore Democratic-Republican March 4, 1803 –March 3, 1813 Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1803.Re-elected in 1804.Re-elected in 1806.Re-elected in 1808.Re-elected in 1810.Retired. 1803–1813"Chester district" Elias Earle Democratic-Republican March 4, 1813 –March 3, 1815 Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1812.Lost re-election. 1813–1823"Pendleton district" John Taylor Democratic-Republican March 4, 1815 –March 3, 1817 Elected in 1814.Lost re-election. Elias Earle Democratic-Republican March 4, 1817 –March 3, 1821 Elected in 1816.Re-elected in 1818.Retired. John Wilson Democratic-Republican March 4, 1821 –March 3, 1823 Elected in 1820.Redistricted to the . Joseph Gist JacksonRepublican March 4, 1823 –March 3, 1825 Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1823.Re-elected in 1824.Retired. 1823–1833"Chester district" Jacksonian March 4, 1825 –March 3, 1827 William T. Nuckolls Jacksonian March 4, 1827 –March 3, 1833 Elected in 1826.Re-elected in 1828.Re-elected in 1830.Retired. William K. Clowney Nullifier March 4, 1833 –March 3, 1835 Elected in 1833.Lost re-election. 1833–1843 James Rogers Jacksonian March 4, 1835 –March 3, 1837 Elected in 1834.Lost re-election. William K. Clowney Nullifier March 4, 1837 –March 3, 1839 Elected in 1836.Retired. James Rogers Democratic March 4, 1839 –March 3, 1843 Elected in 1838.Re-elected in 1840.Retired. Robert B. Rhett Democratic March 4, 1843 –March 3, 1849 Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1843.Re-elected in 1844.Re-elected in 1846.Retired. 1843–1853 William F. Colcock Democratic March 4, 1849 –March 3, 1853 Elected in 1848.Re-elected in 1850.Retired. District dissolved March 3, 1853 District re-established March 4, 1883 Edmund W. M. Mackey Republican March 4, 1883 –January 27, 1884 Redistricted from the and re-elected in 1882.Died. 1883–1893 Vacant January 27, 1884 –March 18, 1884 Robert Smalls Republican March 18, 1884 –March 3, 1887 Elected to finish Mackey's term.Re-elected in 1884.Lost re-election. William Elliott Democratic March 4, 1887 –September 23, 1890 Elected in 1886.Re-elected in 1888.Lost election contest. Thomas E. Miller Republican September 24, 1890 –March 3, 1891 Won election contest.Lost re-election. William Elliott Democratic March 4, 1891 –March 3, 1893 Elected in 1890.Retired. George W. Murray Republican March 4, 1893 –March 3, 1895 Elected in 1892.Redistricted to the . 1893–1903 J. William Stokes Democratic March 4, 1895 –June 1, 1896 Elected in 1894.Seat declared vacant while being contested because of Democratic election fraud. Vacant June 1, 1896 –November 3, 1896 J. William Stokes Democratic November 3, 1896 –July 6, 1901 Elected to finish his own term.Also elected in 1896 to the next term.Re-elected in 1898.Re-elected in 1900.Died. Vacant July 6, 1901 –November 5, 1901 Asbury F. Lever Democratic November 5, 1901 –August 1, 1919 Elected to finish Stokes's term.Re-elected in 1902.Re-elected in 1904.Re-elected in 1906.Re-elected in 1908.Re-elected in 1910.Re-elected in 1912.Re-elected in 1914.Re-elected in 1916.Re-elected in 1918.Resigned to become member of Federal Farm Loan Board. 1903–1913 1913–1923 Vacant August 1, 1919 –October 7, 1919 Edward C. Mann Democratic October 7, 1919 –March 3, 1921 Elected to finish Lever's term.Lost renomination. Hampton P. Fulmer Democratic March 4, 1921 –March 3, 1933 Elected in 1920.Re-elected in 1922.Re-elected in 1924.Re-elected in 1926.Re-elected in 1928.Re-elected in 1930.Redistricted to the . 1923–1933 District dissolved March 3, 1933 District re-established January 3, 2013 Tom Rice Republican January 3, 2013 –January 3, 2023 Elected in 2012.Re-elected in 2014.Re-elected in 2016.Re-elected in 2018.Re-elected in 2020.Lost renomination. 2013–2023 Russell Fry RepublicanJanuary 3, 2023 –presentElected in 2022.Re-elected in 2024. 2023–2033

Past election results 2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

2022

2024

South Carolina's 7th congressional district

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