Democrat Courtney McClain is officially in the running for South Carolina's 4th Congressional District. If elected, she would be the first Black woman elected to Congress from the state.
The district serves parts of Greenville and Spartanburg Counties. Republican William Timmons has held the seat since 2019. He succeeded Republican Trey Gowdy who did not seek reelection.
A native of Spartanburg, McClain has held several leadership and fellowship roles, including serving as President of the South Carolina NAACP Youth and College Division. She was also a Fannie Lou Hamer Government Relations Fellow with the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, a fellow with the HBCU Green Fund, and a congressional intern with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.
McClain is a 2025 graduate of Howard University, where she earned a Master of Arts in Political Science with a concentration in American Government, Politics, and Policy. She is also a 2023 graduate of the University of South Carolina in Columbia, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Communications with a minor in Political Science. Additionally, she is among the 8% of USC students to graduate with a Graduate Leadership Distinction (GLD) in Diversity and Social Advocacy.