2016 South Carolina Senate election

The 2016 South Carolina Senate elections took place as part of the biennial United States elections. South Carolina voters elected state senators in all 46 districts. State senators serve four-year terms in the South Carolina Senate, with all the up for election each cycle.

The primary election was on June 14, 2016, and the primary runoff on June 28, 2016, determined which candidates appeared on the November 8, 2016 general election ballot.

Following the 2012 state senate elections, Republicans maintained effective control of the Senate with 28 members. To reclaim control of the chamber from Republicans, the Democrats needed to gain 6 Senate seats. Republicans retained control of the South Carolina Senate following the 2016 general election and the overall numerical composition of the chamber was unaltered.

District 42 (October 1, 2013)
After Democratic incumbent Robert Ford resigned citing health problems amidst an ethics probe, a special election was triggered for District 42. A Democratic primary took place on August 13, a Democratic primary took place on August 27, and the special election took place on October 1, 2013, with Marlon Kimpson elected to serve.

District 32 (November 4, 2014)
When Democratic incumbent Yancey McGill became President Pro Tem of the Senate and then Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina, he vacated his seat. A Democratic primary and primary runoff were held on September 2 and 16, respectively. The special election was concurrently held with the 2014 United States Election, where Ronnie Sabb was elected to represent District 32.

District 45 (October 20, 2015)
The District 45 seat was left vacant after Reverend Clementa C. Pickney was murdered during the Charleston church massacre at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. A Democratic primary and primary runoff were held on September 1 and 15, respectively. The special election was held on October 20 and Margie Bright Matthews was elected to District 45.

District 4 (May 17, 2016)
After Billy O'Dell passed away in office due to heart problems, a special election was held. A Republican primary was held on March 22, and a primary runoff was held on April 5.

Initially, five Republicans ran in the primary, with a runoff initiated between Michael Gambrell and Rockey Burgess when no candidate received a majority of the votes. Gambrell defeated Burgess in the runoff with 57% of the vote. With no opposition, Gambrell won the special election on May 17.

Summary of results
Source:

Detailed results

 * Note: If a district does not list a primary or a runoff, then that district did not have a primary or runoff election (i.e., there may have only been one candidate file for that district).

District 1
District 1 covers parts of Oconee and Pickens Counties. Incumbent Thomas C. Alexander ran uncontested in the Republican primary and general election. He was reelected to a sixth full-term in the Senate.

District 2
District 2 consists of parts of Pickens County. During the Republican primary, incumbent Larry Martin was challenged by three other Republicans, Rex Rice, Dos Joslyn, and Allan Quinn. Initially, Martin came in first with Rice lagging more than 10 percentage points behind. However, since no candidate received a majority of the votes, the election went to a runoff between Martin and Rice. The result was a surprising upset in which Rice defeated Martin, capping his Senate career at 24 years. Martin's loss was attributed to a combination of factors including anti-incumbency fervor and dark money political action committees. In the general election, Rice ran unopposed and was subsequently elected to the Senate.

District 4
District 4 is made up of parts of Abbeville, Anderson and Greenwood Counties. Republican Rockey Burgess challenged Gambrell for a second time after losing to him just a few months prior during the special election. In the general election, Gambrell won an uncontested race and was elected to his first full term.