The 1918 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on Tuesday, November 5, simultaneously with the special senate election to elect the

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

for a six-year term from South Carolina. Nathaniel B. Dial won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election to win the six-year term to the Senate.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Coleman Livingston Blease Coleman Livingston Blease (October 8, 1868 – January 19, 1942) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as the 89th governor of South Carolina from 1911 to 1915, and as a United States senator from 1925 to 1931. Blease was ...

, former Governor of South Carolina * Nathaniel B. Dial, former mayor of Laurens and candidate for Senate in 1912 * James F. Rice *

Benjamin Tillman Benjamin Ryan Tillman (August 11, 1847 – July 3, 1918) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as governor of South Carolina from 1890 to 1894, and as a United States Senator from 1895 until his death in 1918. A whit ...

, incumbent Senator since 1895 (died July 3)

Campaign

The

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

in 1918 for Senate was shaping up to be a contentious affair between

Ben Tillman Benjamin Ryan Tillman (August 11, 1847 – July 3, 1918) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as governor of South Carolina from 1890 to 1894, and as a United States Senator from 1895 until his death in 1918. A white ...

and

Cole Blease Coleman Livingston Blease (October 8, 1868 – January 19, 1942) was an Americans, American politician of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party who served as the List of governors of South Carolina, 89th governor of South Carolina ...

, two of the state's most notorious

demagogue A demagogue (from Greek , a popular leader, a leader of a mob, from , people, populace, the commons + leading, leader) or rabble-rouser is a political leader in a democracy who gains popularity by arousing the common people against elites, e ...

s. Blease had performed surprisingly well in the 1916 gubernatorial election where he had almost knocked off incumbent Governor

Richard Irvine Manning III Richard Irvine Manning III (August 15, 1859 – September 11, 1931) was an American politician from the U.S. state of South Carolina. He served as a state legislator and as the 92nd governor of South Carolina. Biography Richard Irvine Manning I ...

. The death of Tillman in July ended all prospects of an epic battle and the race became a contest between Blease and Nathaniel B. Dial. The

South Carolina Democratic Party The South Carolina Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina. History The Democratic Party thrived during the Second Party System between 1832 ...

held the primary on August 27 and Dial garnered over 50% of the vote to avoid a

runoff election The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...

. Blease suffered the worst loss of his political career mainly because of his vitriolic opposition to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

which made him appear as a traitor. There was no opposition to the Democratic candidate in the general election so Dial was elected to a six-year term in the Senate.

Results

General election results

, - , , colspan=5 , Democratic hold , -

References

* *"Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina. Part II." ''Reports of State Officers Boards and Committees to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina''. Volume II. Columbia, SC: 1919, p. 43. {{DEFAULTSORT:United States Senate Election In South Carolina, 1918

1918 This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide. Events Below, the events ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...