The 2010 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Jim DeMint won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic nominee Alvin Greene.

Democratic primary On June 8, 2010, Alvin Greene won the South Carolina Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, receiving 100,362 (59%) votes out of 170,215 votes cast; 69,853 (41%) went to Vic Rawl.South Carolina State Election Commission. Official election results. Note: scroll down or page through the list to find the results for the Democratic Senate primary. US Senate Results (Dem). June 14, 2010. Greene's victory over Rawl, a Charleston County councilmember and former state legislator, was described as an upset.

Candidates Alvin Greene, U.S. Army veteran Vic Rawl, Charleston County Council member and former state legislator

Results

Republican primary

Candidates Jim DeMint, incumbent U.S. senator Susan McDonald Gaddy

Results

General election

Candidates Jim DeMint (Republican), incumbent U.S. senator Alvin Greene (Democratic), U.S. Army veteran Tom Clements (Green), environmental activist and Southeast director, Friends of the EarthGreen, Libertarian, Working Families, Labor, Constitution, United Citizens, Independence - List of candidates who have filed with these parties. Tom Clements was nominated May 1 during the South Carolina Green Party Convention in Columbia. Candidates were nominated by convention and did not appear on Republican or Democratic primary ballots.

Campaign Controversies surrounded the Democratic nominee, Alvin Greene. At the time of his Senate campaign, Greene was unemployed and living with and caring for his fatherWolfe, Wes. http://www.wolfereports.com/tag/alvin-greene/Strange happenings in the Dem senatorial primary. Wolfe Reports. May 21, 2010. in Manning, South Carolina.Hutchins, Corey. A Phantom Candidate for U.S. Senate? Free Times. Issue #23.20 :: May 19, 2010 – May 25, 2010 Greene's primary election win and his margin of victory surprised pundits. As of the primary, he had held no public campaign events, raised no money, and did not have a campaign website.

U.S. Congressman Jim Clyburn recommended Greene drop out of the race or face a federal investigation into his candidacy, even as Greene faced a felony obscenity charge in Richland County from November 2009. Clyburn said, "There were some real shenanigans going on in the South Carolina primary. I don't know if he was a Republican plant; he was someone's plant." Political blog FiveThirtyEight's Tom Schaller suggested three possibilities: a legitimate vote, the vote was rigged, or the vote-counting software was corrupted. Schaller ruled out the possibility of Republican infiltration, similar to Rush Limbaugh's "Operation Chaos" in 2008.

In response to an official protest filed by Vic Rawl, who was defeated by Greene in the Democratic primary, the executive committee of the South Carolina Democratic Party conducted a formal hearing on June 17, 2010, to assess the legitimacy of the primary election results.Kinnard, Meg (June 17, 2010) "SC Dems hearing protest over US Senate primary", The Associated Press. Retrieved June 17, 2010.O'Donnell, Kelly (June 16, 2010) "SC Dems to hold hearing on Greene tomorrow", MSNBC.com. Retrieved June 17, 2010. Greene neither attended nor sent a representative to the hearing. The executive committee of the South Carolina Democratic Party voted 55 to 10 to reject Rawl's request for a new Senate primary,Capehart, Jonathan (June 18, 2010) , The Washington Post. Retrieved June 18, 2010.Washington, Wayne (June 18, 2010) "Democrats uphold Greene’s nomination for Senate" , The State.com. Retrieved June 18, 2010. finding insufficient evidence of impropriety to disturb the primary election result.Kinnard, Meg. "SC Dems uphold US Senate primary shocker", The Associated Press. Retrieved June 17, 2010.Toeplitz, Shira (June 18, 2010) "S.C. Dems reject Rawl appeal", Politico. Retrieved June 18, 2010.

At multiple points during the campaign, the South Carolina Democratic Party called for Greene to withdraw his candidacy. In August 2010, South Carolina Democratic Party chairwoman Carol Fowler asserted that the criminal charges against Greene would make it impossible for him to run a statewide campaign.

Green Party challenger Tom Clements won the endorsement of the Greater Columbia Central Labor Council of the South Carolina AFL-CIO, a coalition of labor unions. The Clements campaign received regional media coverage.And in the Third Corner...An interview with Tom Clements, Green Party Candidate for U.S. Senate . By Darien Cavanaugh. Columbia City Paper. October 6, 2010. A Winthrop University poll conducted between October 5 and 10, 741 likely South Carolina voters found Clements running second with 12.2% of the vote against 11.2% for Greene and 58.3% for incumbent Republican Sen. Jim DeMint.Winthrop Poll Shows Haley Ahead and Other Opinions by S.C. Voters Winthrop Poll, October 13, 2010Winthrop Poll Shows Haley Ahead and Other Opinions by S.C. Voters Winthrop Poll Questions and Answers. Page 2. October 13, 2010 An October 13 article in the Columbia Free Times noted that prominent Democrats were privately donating money to the Clements campaign. According to the FEC, as of September 30, Clements for Senate had raised $34,334. DeMint had raised in excess of $3 million, while Greene reported no fundraising activities.2010 House and Senate Campaign Finance for South Carolina All Senate Candidates -- SC

Write-in candidates also joined the race, including the Reverend Mazie Ferguson, Mauldin High School teacher Greg Snoad, Michael C Neumann, and chef Nathalie Dupree. Mazie Ferguson was endorsed by House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn in late August; Clyburn said he would not vote for Greene due to his felony indictment.

Greene has been described as an enigmatic figure in American politics. He is known for his "strange, well-documented behavior on the campaign trail". A study by the Pew Research Center released in late July 2010 found that Greene's campaign had received the most media attention of all of the 2010 political campaigns.

The Republican candidate, incumbent Senator Jim DeMint, largely campaigned outside South Carolina for Republican Senate candidates identified with the Tea Party.DeMint Transfers Campaign Money to State Republicans . By David M. Drucker, CQ-Roll Call. CQ POLITICS NEWS. October 18, 2010 – 1:20 p.m. Diverse media outlets frequently referred to DeMint as a party "kingmaker" for supporting successful primary challengers to mainstream Republican candidates.Jim DeMint: Call him the kingmaker. S.C.'s DeMint a star on the rise. By James Rosen. McClatchy Newspapers, Washington Bureau. Sunday, September 19, 2010.DeMint Vaults From Back Bench to Republican Kingmaker: While Sarah Palin gets most of the attention for having helped numerous unlikely candidates win Republican primaries this year, DeMint emerged as an even bigger force. By Lisa Lerer. Bloomberg News. SPECIAL REPORT September 16, 2010, 4:36PM EST.Jim DeMint: Conservative 'Kingmaker' or Inside-the-Beltway Interloper? Matt Lewis, Columnist. Politics Daily. May 25, 2010.

At an October 3 appearance before a rally at Spartanburg North Baptist Church, DeMint reminded the audience of his 2004 comments that gay men and sexually active single women should be prohibited from teaching in public schools.Tenenbaum, DeMint exchange unpleasantries on social security, taxes, gay teachers . WISTV. Associated Press. October 4, 2004.Meet The Press. Transcript for October 17, 2004. Guests: Ken Mehlman, Bush-Cheney '04 Campaign Manager, Bob Shrum, Kerry-Edwards '04 Campaign Chief Strategist, Rep. Jim DeMint, (R-S.C.), Republican Senate Candidate, Inez Tenenbaum, South Carolina State Superintendent of Education, Democratic Senate Candidate.Sen. Jim DeMint: Gays And Unmarried, Pregnant Women Should Not Teach Public School. Amanda Turkel. Huffington Post. October 2, 2010. The Spartanburg Herald-Journal reported:

The remarks attracted national media attention, largely critical.Jim DeMint Criticized Over Comments on Gay and Sexually Active Teachers. By Brian Montopoli. CBS News, Political Hotsheet. October 5, 2010 2:04 PM. DeMint defended the statements, saying that local school boards should decide the issue.DeMint defends 'no gay teachers'. UPI. Published: October 5, 2010 at 1:46 PM Challenger Tom Clements condemned DeMint's stance in a subsequent interview with the Herald-Journal:

"He's trying to push his version of religion onto the entire country. And I believe in separation of church and state. And I do believe that gay people should have equal rights," Clements said. "That's his belief, but I don't think he can force that on society as a whole or the public school system."Clements criticizes DeMint on gay teacher issue: Opponent for Senate blasts incumbent for stance on who is fit to teach. By Jason Spencer. Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Tuesday, October 5, 2010 at 3:15 a.m.

Endorsements

Organization endorsements

Tom Clements: Columbia Central Labor Council (AFL-CIO) Friends of the Earth Action Sierra Club South Carolina Latino Political Action Committee

Jim DeMint Americans For Legal Immigration Citizens for a Sound Economy National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund

Newspaper endorsements

Tom Clements:

Rock Hill Herald

Jim DeMint:

Florence Morning News Charleston Post and Courier

Predictions Source Ranking As of Cook Political Report October 26, 2010 Rothenberg October 22, 2010 RealClearPolitics October 26, 2010 Sabato's Crystal Ball October 21, 2010 CQ Politics October 26, 2010

Polling Poll source Dates administered Jim DeMint (R) Alvin Greene (D) Tom Clements (G) Other UndecidedRasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports June 10, 2010 58% 21% –– 9% 13%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports August 3, 2010 62% 20% –– 7% 10%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports August 25, 2010 63% 19% –– 8% 10%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports September 22, 2010 64% 21% –– 10% 5%Crantford & AssociatesCrantford & Associates October 2, 2010 58% 21% –– 10% 5%Winthrop UniversityWinthrop University October 5–10, 2010 58% 11% 12% 3% 14%Rasmussen ReportsRasmussen Reports October 19, 2010 58% 21% –– 15% 6%

Fundraising Candidate (party) Receipts Disbursements Cash on hand Debt Jim DeMint (R) $3,521,210 $2,915,717 $2,224,594 $0 Alvin Greene (D) $0 $0 $0 $0 Tom Clements (G) $45,131 $20,216 $24,915 $0 Source: Federal Election Commission. Next F.E.C. reports are due October 15, 2010.

Results

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican Calhoun (largest town: St. Matthews) Clarendon (largest city: Manning) Sumter (largest city: Sumter) Richland (largest city: Columbia) Chesterfield (largest city: Cheraw) Colleton (largest city: Walterboro) Darlington (largest city: Hartsville) Charleston (largest town: Charleston) Chester (largest town: Chester) McCormick (largest town: McCormick) Dillon (largest city: Dillon)

References

External links South Carolina State Election Commission U.S. Congress candidates for South Carolina at Project Vote Smart South Carolina U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com Campaign contributions from Open Secrets graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com Election 2010: South Carolina Senate from Rasmussen Reports

from CQ Politics Race profile from The New York Times Official campaign websites (archived) Jim DeMint for U.S. Senate Alvin Greene for U.S. Senate