Governor of South Carolina
Seal of the Governor
Incumbent Henry McMaster since January 24, 2017
Style	His Excellency
Term length	Four years, renewable once consecutively

Colonial period	1562–1774
American Revolution	1775–1788
Antebellum period	1812–1860
Civil War era	1861–1865
Reconstruction era	1865–1877
Civil Rights Movement	1954–1968
Economy of South Carolina	1651–2021

The current governor of South Carolina is Henry McMaster who has been in office since January 24, 2017. South Carolina governors are counted only once; therefore, Joseph West, for instance, a colonial governor who served three non-consecutive terms, is considered the second governor of South Carolina, not the second, fourth, and seventh.

Colonial period (1670–1775)

Further information: List of colonial governors of South Carolina

Statehood period (1776–present)

Presidents under the Articles of Confederation

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

Parties

No party (2)

#	President		Took office	Left office	Vice president	Party	Notes
31		John Rutledge	March 26, 1776	March 5, 1778	Henry Laurens	No party	1st time, Resigned^[a]
32		Rawlins Lowndes	March 6, 1778	January 9, 1779	James Parsons	No party	British prisoner during Revolutionary War

Governors under the Articles of Confederation

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

Parties

Independent (4) Federalist (2)

Governors of the State of South Carolina (1779 to 1792)
No.		Party	Term in office	Time in office	Lieutenant Governor		Notes
-	John Rutledge	Independent	January 9, 1779 – January 31, 1782 (Term limited)	3 years		Thomas Bee	2nd time
-	John Rutledge	Independent	January 9, 1779 – January 31, 1782 (Term limited)	3 years		Christopher Gadsden	2nd time
33	John Mathews	Independent	January 31, 1782 – February 4, 1783 (Not a candidate for reelection)	1 year		Richard Hutson
34	Benjamin Guerard	Independent	February 4, 1783 – February 11, 1785 (Not a candidate for reelection)	2 years		Richard Beresford
					Vacant
						William Moultrie
35	William Moultrie	Independent	February 11, 1785 – February 20, 1787 (Not a candidate for reelection)	2 years		Charles Drayton	1st time
36	Thomas Pinckney	Federalist	February 20, 1787 – January 26, 1789 (Not a candidate for reelection)	2 years		Thomas Gadsden
37	Charles Pinckney	Federalist	January 26, 1789 – December 5, 1792 (Term limited)	4 years		Alexander Gillon	1st time

Governors under the Constitution of 1790

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

Parties

Federalist (3) Democratic-Republican (15) Nullifier (Democratic) (3) Democratic (17) Unionist Democrat (1)

Governors of the State of South Carolina (1790 to 1865)
No.	Governor		Party	Term in office	Time in office	Lieutenant Governor		Notes
-		William Moultrie	Federalist	December 5, 1792 – December 17, 1794 (Term limited)	2 years		James Ladson	2nd time
38		Arnoldus Vanderhorst	Federalist	December 17, 1794 – December 8, 1796 (Term limited)	2 years		Lewis Morris
-		Charles Pinckney	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1796 – December 18, 1798 (Term limited)	2 years		Robert Anderson	2nd time
39		Edward Rutledge	Federalist	December 18, 1798 – January 23, 1800 (Died)	1 year		John Drayton
40		John Drayton	Democratic-Republican	January 23, 1800 – December 8, 1802 (Term limited)	3 years	Vacant		1st time
40		John Drayton	Democratic-Republican	January 23, 1800 – December 8, 1802 (Term limited)	3 years		Richard Winn	1st time
41		James Burchill Richardson	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1802 – December 7, 1804 (Term limited)	2 years		Ezekiel Pickens
42		Paul Hamilton	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1804 – December 9, 1806 (Term limited)	2 years		Thomas Sumter, Jr.
-		Charles Pinckney	Democratic-Republican	December 9, 1806 – December 10, 1808 (Term limited)	2 years		John Hopkins	3rd time
-		John Drayton	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1808 – December 8, 1810 (Term limited)	2 years		Frederick Nance	2nd time
43		Henry Middleton	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1810 – December 10, 1812 (Term limited)	2 years		Samuel Farrow
44		Joseph Alston	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1812 – December 10, 1814 (Term limited)	2 years		Eldred Simkins
45		David Rogerson Williams	Democratic-Republican	December 10, 1814 – December 5, 1816 (Term limited)	2 years		Robert Creswell
46		Andrew Pickens	Democratic-Republican	December 5, 1816 – December 8, 1818 (Term limited)	2 years		John A. Cuthbert
47		John Geddes	Democratic-Republican	December 8, 1818 – December 7, 1820 (Term limited)	2 years		William Youngblood
48		Thomas Bennett, Jr.	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1820 – December 7, 1822 (Term limited)	2 years		William Pinckney
49		John Lyde Wilson	Democratic-Republican	December 7, 1822 – December 3, 1824 (Term limited)	2 years		Henry Bradley
50		Richard Irvine Manning I	Democratic-Republican	December 3, 1824 – December 9, 1826 (Term limited)	2 years		William Bull
51		John Taylor	Democratic-Republican	December 9, 1826 – December 6, 1828 (Term limited)	2 years		James Witherspoon
52		Stephen Decatur Miller	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 6, 1828 – December 9, 1830 (Term limited)	2 years		Thomas Williams
53		James Hamilton, Jr.	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 9, 1830 – December 10, 1832 (Term limited)	2 years		Patrick Noble
54		Robert Young Hayne	Nullifier (Democratic)	December 10, 1832 – December 9, 1834 (Term limited)	2 years		Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
55		George McDuffie	Democratic	December 9, 1834 – December 10, 1836 (Term limited)	2 years		Whitemarsh Benjamin Seabrook
56		Pierce Mason Butler	Democratic	December 10, 1836 – December 7, 1838 (Term limited)	2 years		William DuBose
57		Patrick Noble	Democratic	December 7, 1838 – April 7, 1840 (Died)	1.5 years		Barnabas Kelet Henagan
58		Barnabas Kelet Henagan	Democratic	April 7, 1840 – December 9, 1840 (Not a candidate for election)	8 months	Vacant		Not elected
59		John Peter Richardson II	Democratic	December 9, 1840 – December 8, 1842 (Term limited)	2 years		William K. Clowney
60		James Henry Hammond	Democratic	December 8, 1842 – December 7, 1844 (Term limited)	2 years		Isaac D. Witherspoon
61		William Aiken, Jr.	Democratic	December 7, 1844 – December 8, 1846 (Term limited)	2 years		J.F. Ervin
62		David Johnson	Democratic	December 8, 1846 – December 12, 1848 (Term limited)	2 years		William Cain
63		Whitemarsh B. Seabrook	Democratic	December 12, 1848 – December 13, 1850 (Term limited)	2 years		William Henry Gist
64		John Hugh Means	Democratic	December 13, 1850 – December 9, 1852 (Term limited)	2 years		Joshua John Ward
65		John Lawrence Manning	Democratic	December 9, 1852 – December 11, 1854 (Term limited)	2 years		James Irby
66		James Hopkins Adams	Democratic	December 11, 1854 – December 9, 1856 (Term limited)	2 years		Richard de Treville
67		Robert F.W. Allston	Democratic	December 9, 1856 – December 10, 1858 (Term limited)	2 years		Gabriel Cannon
68		William Henry Gist	Democratic	December 10, 1858 – December 14, 1860 (Term limited)	2 years		M. E. Carn
69		Francis Wilkinson Pickens	Confederate Democrat	December 14, 1860 – December 17, 1862 (Term limited)	2 years		W.W. Harllee
70		Milledge Luke Bonham	Confederate Democrat	December 17, 1862 – December 18, 1864 (Term limited)	2 years		Plowden Weston (Died)
70		Milledge Luke Bonham	Confederate Democrat	December 17, 1862 – December 18, 1864 (Term limited)	2 years	Vacant
71		Andrew Gordon Magrath	Confederate Democrat	December 18, 1864 – May 25, 1865 (Overthrown)	6 months		Robert McCaw	Imprisoned by the Union Army
-	Second Military District (Military Government)			May 25, 1865 – June 30, 1865	-	State government dissolved
72		Benjamin Franklin Perry	Unionist Democrat	June 30, 1865 – November 29, 1865 (Served until state government reestablished)	5 months	Office of Lieutenant Governor temporarily abolished		Not elected; appointed by President Andrew Johnson

Post-Civil War Governors through the present

Governors are elected at-large

2-year term, renewable once: 1868-1927
4-year term, not renewable consecutively: 1927-1982
4-year term, renewable once consecutively: 1982–present

Parties

Democratic (35) Republican (9) No party (1)

Governors of the State of South Carolina (1865 to present)
No.	Governor		Party	Term in office^[b]	Time in Office	Election		Notes
73		James Lawrence Orr	No Party	November 26, 1865 – July 6, 1868 (Not candidate for election)	2.5 years	1865	W.D. Porter	First popularly elected governor
74		Robert Kingston Scott	Republican	July 6, 1868 – December 7, 1872 (Term limited)	4.5 years	1868	Lemuel Boozer
74		Robert Kingston Scott	Republican	July 6, 1868 – December 7, 1872 (Term limited)	4.5 years	1870	Alonzo J. Ransier
75		Franklin J. Moses, Jr.	Republican	December 7, 1872 – December 1, 1874 (Lost renomination)	2 years	1872	Richard Howell Gleaves
76		Daniel Henry Chamberlain	Republican	December 1, 1874 – December 14, 1876 (Lost reelection)	2 years	1874	Richard Howell Gleaves	Lost reelection in 1876 election, but refused to leave office
-	Disputed			December 14, 1876 – April 11, 1877	-	Disputed between Chamberlain and Wade Hampton III. Two governments were formed during this time. Main article: Disputed government of South Carolina of 1876-77
77		Wade Hampton III	Democratic	April 11, 1877 – September 26, 1879 (Resigned)^[c]	2.5 years	1876	William Dunlap Simpson	Declared sole governor four months after taking office
77		Wade Hampton III	Democratic	April 11, 1877 – September 26, 1879 (Resigned)^[c]	2.5 years	1878	William Dunlap Simpson	Declared sole governor four months after taking office
78		William Dunlap Simpson	Democratic	February 26, 1879 – September 1, 1880 (Resigned)^[d]	1.5 years		Vacant	Not elected
79		Thomas Bothwell Jeter	Democratic	September 1, 1880 – November 30, 1880 (Not a candidate for election)	3 months		Vacant	Not elected
80		Johnson Hagood	Democratic	November 30, 1880 – December 1, 1882 (Not a candidate for reelection)	2 years	1880	John D. Kennedy
81		Hugh Smith Thompson	Democratic	December 1, 1882 – July 10, 1886 (Resigned)^[e]	3.5 years	1882	John Calhoun Sheppard
81		Hugh Smith Thompson	Democratic	December 1, 1882 – July 10, 1886 (Resigned)^[e]	3.5 years	1884	John Calhoun Sheppard
82		John Calhoun Sheppard	Democratic	July 10, 1886 – November 30, 1886 (Not a candidate for election)	5 months	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant	Not elected
83		John Peter Richardson III	Democratic	November 30, 1886 – December 4, 1890 (Term limited)	4 years	1886	William Mauldin
83		John Peter Richardson III	Democratic	November 30, 1886 – December 4, 1890 (Term limited)	4 years	1888	William Mauldin
84		Benjamin Ryan Tillman	Democratic	December 4, 1890 – December 4, 1894 (Term limited)	4 years	1890	Eugene Gary
84		Benjamin Ryan Tillman	Democratic	December 4, 1890 – December 4, 1894 (Term limited)	4 years	1892	Washington Hodges Timmerman
85		John Gary Evans	Democratic	December 4, 1894 – January 18, 1897 (Not a candidate for reelection)	2 years	1894	Washington Hodges Timmerman
86		William Haselden Ellerbe	Democratic	January 18, 1897 – June 2, 1899 (Died)	2.5 years	1896	Miles Benjamin McSweeney
86		William Haselden Ellerbe	Democratic	January 18, 1897 – June 2, 1899 (Died)	2.5 years	1898	Miles Benjamin McSweeney
87		Miles Benjamin McSweeney	Democratic	June 2, 1899 – January 20, 1903 (Not a candidate for reelection)	3.5 years	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Robert B. Scarborough
87		Miles Benjamin McSweeney	Democratic		3.5 years	1900	Robert B. Scarborough
88		Duncan Clinch Heyward	Democratic	January 20, 1903 – January 15, 1907 (Term limited)	4 years	1902	James Tillman
88		Duncan Clinch Heyward	Democratic	January 20, 1903 – January 15, 1907 (Term limited)	4 years	1904	John Sloan
89		Martin Frederick Ansel	Democratic	January 15, 1907 – January 17, 1911 (Term limited)	4 years	1906	Thomas Gordon McLeod
89		Martin Frederick Ansel	Democratic	January 15, 1907 – January 17, 1911 (Term limited)	4 years	1908	Thomas Gordon McLeod
90		Coleman Livingston Blease	Democratic	January 17, 1911 – January 14, 1915 (Resigned)^[f]	4 years	1910	Charles Aurelius Smith
90		Coleman Livingston Blease	Democratic	January 17, 1911 – January 14, 1915 (Resigned)^[f]	4 years	1912	Charles Aurelius Smith
91		Charles Aurelius Smith	Democratic	January 14, 1915 – January 19, 1915 (Not a candidate for election)	5 days	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant	Shortest term Not elected
92		Richard Irvine Manning III	Democratic	January 19, 1915 – January 21, 1919 (Term limited)	4 years	1914	Andrew Bethea
92		Richard Irvine Manning III	Democratic	January 19, 1915 – January 21, 1919 (Term limited)	4 years	1916	Andrew Bethea
93		Robert Archer Cooper	Democratic	January 21, 1919 – May 20, 1922 (Resigned)^[g]	3.25 years	1918	J.T. Lyles
93		Robert Archer Cooper	Democratic	January 21, 1919 – May 20, 1922 (Resigned)^[g]	3.25 years	1920	Wilson Godfrey Harvey
94		Wilson Godfrey Harvey	Democratic	May 20, 1922 – January 16, 1923 (Not a candidate for election)	1.75 years	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant	Not elected
95		Thomas Gordon McLeod	Democratic	January 16, 1923 – January 18, 1927 (Term limited)	4 years	1922	E.B. Jackson
95		Thomas Gordon McLeod	Democratic	January 16, 1923 – January 18, 1927 (Term limited)	4 years	1924	E.B. Jackson
96		John Gardiner Richards, Jr.	Democratic	January 18, 1927 – January 20, 1931 (Term limited)	4 years	1926	Thomas Bothwell Butler	First elected to four-year term^[h]
97		Ibra Charles Blackwood	Democratic	January 20, 1931 – January 15, 1935 (Term limited)	4 years	1930	James Sheppard
98		Olin D. Johnston	Democratic	January 15, 1935 – January 17, 1939 (Term limited)	4 years	1934	Joseph Emile Harley	1st time
99		Burnet R. Maybank	Democratic	January 17, 1939 – November 4, 1941 (Resigned)^[i]	2.5 years	1938	Joseph Emile Harley
100		Joseph Emile Harley	Democratic	November 4, 1941 – February 27, 1942 (Died)	4 months		Vacant	Not elected
Vacant				February 27, 1942 – March 2, 1942	-
101		Richard Manning Jefferies	Democratic	March 2, 1942 – January 19, 1943 (Not a candidate for election)	8 months			Not elected
98		Olin D. Johnston	Democratic	January 19, 1943 – January 2, 1945 (Resigned)^[j]	2 years (6 years total)	1942	Ransome Judson Williams	2nd time
102		Ransome Judson Williams	Democratic	January 2, 1945 – January 21, 1947 (Not a candidate for election)	2 years	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant	Not elected
103		Strom Thurmond	Democratic	January 21, 1947 – January 16, 1951 (Term limited)	4 years	1946	George Bell Timmerman, Jr.
104		James Francis Byrnes	Democratic	January 16, 1951 – January 18, 1955 (Term limited)	4 years	1950	George Bell Timmerman, Jr.
105		George Bell Timmerman, Jr.	Democratic	January 18, 1955 – January 15, 1959 (Term limited)	4 years	1954	Ernest F. Hollings
106		Ernest F. Hollings	Democratic	January 20, 1959 – January 15, 1963 (Term limited)	4 years	1958	Burnet R. Maybank Jr.
107		Donald Stuart Russell	Democratic	January 15, 1963 – April 22, 1965 (Resigned)^[k]	1.5 years	1962	Robert Evander McNair
108		Robert Evander McNair	Democratic	April 22, 1965 – January 19, 1971 (Term limited)	5.5 years	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor		Vacant
108		Robert Evander McNair	Democratic	April 22, 1965 – January 19, 1971 (Term limited)	5.5 years	1966	John C. West	Vacant
109		John C. West	Democratic	January 19, 1971 – January 21, 1975 (Term limited)	4 years	1970	Earle Morris, Jr.
110		James B. Edwards	Republican	January 21, 1975 – January 10, 1979 (Term limited)	4 years	1974	W. Brantley Harvey, Jr.
111		Richard Riley	Democratic	January 10, 1979 – January 14, 1987 (Term limited)	8 years	1978	Nancy Stevenson	First elected to two consecutive 4-year terms
111		Richard Riley	Democratic	January 10, 1979 – January 14, 1987 (Term limited)	8 years	1982	Michael R. Daniel	First elected to two consecutive 4-year terms
112		Carroll A. Campbell, Jr.	Republican	January 14, 1987 – January 11, 1995 (Term limited)	8 years	1986	Nick Theodore
112		Carroll A. Campbell, Jr.	Republican	January 14, 1987 – January 11, 1995 (Term limited)	8 years	1990	Nick Theodore
113		David Beasley	Republican	January 11, 1995 – January 13, 1999 (Lost reelection)	4 years	1994	Bob Peeler
114		Jim Hodges	Democratic	January 13, 1999 – January 15, 2003 (Lost reelection)	4 years	1998	Bob Peeler
115		Mark Sanford	Republican	January 15, 2003 – January 12, 2011 (Term Limited)	8 years	2002	André Bauer
115		Mark Sanford	Republican	January 15, 2003 – January 12, 2011 (Term Limited)	8 years	2006	André Bauer
116		Nikki Haley	Republican	January 12, 2011 – January 24, 2017 (Resigned)^[l]	6 years	2010	Ken Ard	First female governor First minority governor
							Glenn F. McConnell
							J. Yancey McGill
						2014	Henry McMaster
117		Henry McMaster	Republican	January 24, 2017 – Incumbent^[m]	6 years, 41 days^[n]	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Kevin L. Bryant
						2018	Pamela Evette
						2022	Pamela Evette

Notes

References

External links

Governors of South Carolina

Governors of South Carolina
J. Rutledge Lowndes J. Rutledge Mathews Guerard Moultrie T. Pinckney C. Pinckney Moultrie Vanderhorst C. Pinckney E. Rutledge Drayton J. Richardson P. Hamilton C. Pinckney Drayton Middleton Alston D. Williams A. Pickens Geddes Bennett Wilson Manning I Taylor Miller J. Hamilton Hayne McDuffie Butler Noble Henagan Richardson II Hammond Aiken Johnson Seabrook Means J. Manning Adams Allston Gist F. Pickens Bonham Magrath Perry Orr Scott Moses Chamberlain Hampton Simpson Jeter Hagood Thompson Sheppard Richardson III Tillman Evans Ellerbe McSweeney Heyward Ansel Blease Smith Manning III Cooper Harvey McLeod Richards Blackwood Johnston Maybank Harley Jefferies Johnston R. Williams Thurmond Byrnes Timmerman Hollings Russell McNair West Edwards Riley Campbell Beasley Hodges Sanford Haley McMaster

State of South Carolina

State of South Carolina
Columbia (capital)
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