The lesson Republicans should learn from the SC governor runoff results | Opinion
President Donald Trump’s initial endorsement for South Carolina governor suffered a crushing loss in Tuesday’s Republican primary runoff, adding to his mixed success in endorsing candidates in gubernatorial races.
Trump had endorsed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in a crowded Republican primary earlier this month. Evette received the most votes but didn’t crack 50%, which thrust her into a runoff with Attorney General Alan Wilson. Four days before the runoff, Trump made the unusual move of endorsing both candidates after polls showed Wilson with a massive lead over Evette.
When polls closed Tuesday night, Wilson was quickly projected as the winner, and it wasn’t close. While Trump leapt to take credit for endorsing the winner, the truth is that he got it wrong the first time, then hedged his endorsement when it became clear the momentum was in Wilson’s favor. Wilson ran most of the race without Trump’s endorsement, and polls made it clear he didn’t really need it.
It’s not the first time that Trump has backed the wrong horse in a gubernatorial race this year. Trump’s preferred choice for governor also lost in Republican primaries in Georgia and Iowa this month. That might be a lesson for Republicans — and for Trump — in state-level races. While the Trump endorsement has proved decisive in congressional primaries, it doesn’t seem to carry as much weight for candidates back home.
While Evette and Wilson are on the same page ideologically, they differed in their campaign strategy and message. Evette spent much of her campaign highlighting her connection to Trump and touting his endorsement, and she carried the burden of representing the status quo. She struggled to identify a brand outside of that of the president and of current Gov. Henry McMaster, who also endorsed her. Meanwhile, Wilson also made his support for the president clear, but without his endorsement, he was forced to adopt a different message and a vision of his own. Wilson spoke a lot about affordability and infrastructure, a message with broad and urgent appeal, especially as the state faces growing pains from a population boom.
A similar dynamic existed in the March primary loss suffered by Senate leader Phil Berger in North Carolina. Trump’s endorsement of Berger didn’t move the needle for a candidate who had already fallen out of favor with voters, and Berger misjudged what it would take to regain it. Berger’s campaign was about more than just Trump’s endorsement, but he did advertise it heavily and made efforts to shape himself into the kind of MAGA candidate often preferred by Republican voters. In the process, though, he lost sight of the issues that voters actually cared about.
Candidates like Berger and Evette seemed to think their ticket to victory was parroting Trump the president, but they might have been better off trying to emulate Trump the candidate. Some voters, especially Republicans, are enthusiastic about his brand of nationalism, his culture wars and anti-intellectualism. But he won elections largely because of his ability to tap into voters’ concerns about basic issues like the economy and their wariness of the “establishment.” In many ways, Trump himself has lost sight of that strategy, which is why his approval rating is slipping even among Republican voters.
The South Carolina result isn’t a rebuke of Trump. But it’s an indication that Republican voters, even fervent Trump supporters, see a difference between how they want to be represented in Washington, D.C. and how they want to be represented back home. Recognizing that difference — Trump endorsement or not — seems to be the path to victory so far for Republicans who want to be governor right now. It might be a good reminder for all Republicans, too.
Deputy Opinion Editor Paige Masten covers politics and the 2026 elections for The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer.
This story was originally published June 24, 2026 at 12:39 PM with the headline "The lesson Republicans should learn from the SC governor runoff results | Opinion."
