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The State House Gavel: SC redistricting tug-of-war, what we're watching with 2 weeks left until sine die

South Carolina Public Radio | By Maayan Schechter
Published May 5, 2026 at 6:01 AM EDT
South Carolina House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, left, and South Carolina Senate President Thomas Alexander, R-Walhalla, right, speak before a joint session of the General Assembly on Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Columbia, S.C.
Jeffrey Collins/AP
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AP
South Carolina House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, left, and South Carolina Senate President Thomas Alexander, R-Walhalla, right, speak before a joint session of the General Assembly on Thursday, May 1, 2025, in Columbia, S.C.

It's Tuesday, May 5.

Welcome to Week 17 of the South Carolina legislative session.

This is the second to last week on the official South Carolina legislative calendar. That means, counting today, there are six days left of the session until the clock hits 5 o'clock on May 14.

In this house, we call that sine die.

You're reading The State House Gavel, your daily reporter notebook by Maayan Schechter and Gavin Jackson that previews and captures what goes on at the South Carolina Statehouse.

Election 2026: There are fewer than 40 days to go until South Carolina's statewide primary elections on June 9. And, for another election year, SCETV is bringing viewers and listeners into the studio (so to speak) to hear from the candidates running for the top offices of governor and attorney general. All debates will start at 7 p.m.

  • May 27: GOP attorney general primary debate
  • June 1: GOP gubernatorial primary debate
  • June 3: Democratic gubernatorial primary debate

A livestream of the debates can be found on SCETV's website, Facebook page and news YouTube channel, including on the SC Public Radio website and Facebook page.

ICYMI: Speaking of the governor's race, did you miss Friday's latest episode of "This Week in South Carolina?" We've got you covered. Find host Gavin Jackson's latest interview in the governor's race with Republican Attorney General Alan Wilson, and a conversation with new state Elections Director Conway Belangia about the upcoming June primary and the department's work with the federal government over the release of South Carolinian's voter data.

You can find that full episode below.

Notebook highlights:

  • Calls to redistrict South Carolina's congressional map are intensifying after Supreme Court decision. We break down the debate
  • With two weeks of session left, what are both chambers prioritizing and what we're watching

Where does redistricting stand in SC?

For months, as states around the country have engaged in mid-cycle redistricting, South Carolina's Republican leaders have been clear on the debate over whether to redraw the state's seven congressional districts: they're just not that interested.

Then last week, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Louisiana's congressional map as a "racial gerrymander," in what critics called a gutting of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the landmark law that has enabled minority-majority districts to be drawn and protected by the courts.

The decision sparked calls from conservative Republican lawmakers and candidates for governor for South Carolina's legislature to regroup over its congressional map in an effort to make a 6-1 GOP majority a complete red sweep.

Those calls intensified further after Gov. Henry McMaster released a statement Friday that many believed opened the door to a redraw.

Now, President Donald Trump has weighed in, urging states to redraw their maps.

Does South Carolina need to redraw its maps based on the Louisiana ruling?

Technically, no. At least not according to the interpretation of two high courts and Republican Statehouse leaders.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Louisiana's map a "racial gerrymander," but when the court reviewed South Carolina's map, the justices upheld the state's map in 2024 as a "partisan gerrymander" and therefore constitutional.

Under the last redraw after the 2020 Census, the lone Democratic 6th District, held by longtime Congressman Jim Clyburn, is no longer a minority-majority district. It does, however, pack in the most Democratic-leaning voters.

So whether South Carolina ultimately flirts with redistricting may come down to less of a legal question and more of a political one.

What do GOP leaders say are the redistricting risks, other factors to weigh?

One practical problem for lawmakers is that South Carolina's statewide primary elections are fast approaching. Voter registration ends by early next week, early voting begins in late May and the primaries are on June 9. Absentee ballots have also already been mailed to military and overseas voters.

Redrawing the maps runs the risk of not only potentially delaying South Carolina elections, but would likely include the reopening of candidate filing.

There's a second risk to GOP leaders, according to lawmakers: South Carolina's map could become more competitive.

"I think we need to be careful about this because in an effort to go to 7-0, we very well could go to 5-2, because the the population in South Carolina, the breakdowns are not what a lot of people would expect it to be about how easy it is just to draw seven congressional districts," Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, told us last week. "That's not easy at all. In fact, I think you risk losing a Republican if you try to get too cute with it."

What does this mean for Clyburn, who is running for his 18th term and what may be his final reelection bid?

Clyburn, the former majority whip and party power broker, enjoys a close working relationship with Gov. Henry McMaster and other state officials. He has been able to help secure millions of dollars in funding for the state and has a reputation as a go-to problem solver for South Carolina's businesses and political leaders, particularly in a Democratic Congress or under a Democratic administration.

Why does the sine die agreement matter?

McMaster's office said Monday he does not anticipate, or have a plan, to call the legislature back to Columbia after May 14.

And currently, the legislature has not passed a sine die resolution.

With an agreement in place, the General Assembly can dictate what it does, and when it does it, when lawmakers return to Columbia after May 14.

Without one? The governor is free to call lawmakers back — he just can't tell them what to do.

A sine die resolution proposal passed the Senate in earlier this year, which was a so-called "clean" version, limiting post-May 14 work to issues such as the budget, conference committees, appointments and gubernatorial vetoes.

The resolution, which requires a two-thirds vote to pass, has been sitting in the House since early February without any action.

Lawmakers could choose take up redistricting, but it would require amending the agreement and for both chambers to agree.

"I think there's a possibility we have a sine die resolution," House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, told us last week, adding "we'll look at that next (this) week, and see whether we'll move that forward."

"To me, it's an institutional process," he added.

S.C. House Speaker Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, on the sine die agreement 4.30.26

The South Carolina Statehouse
GAVIN JACKSON
The South Carolina Statehouse

Race to sine die: What to watch

Sure, it's smart to think about what lawmakers may do after May 14.

But, as we noted above, there's still six more days left on the official legislative calendar and lawmakers have plenty of priorities they want to get done before the clock sends them home next Thursday.

What are they doing this week?

  • We're told the House plans, at this time (always could change) include a focus on three main bills: Known as "H2," the lower chamber will get another go at the state's $15 billion budget that originated from the lower chamber. House leaders also said they may debate legislation that would permit the over-the-counter sale of ivermectin (H. 4042) and legislation (S. 508) to further expand the Heritage Act, a 2000 law that prohibits the removal, disturbance, alteration or relocation of certain monuments and memorials
  • The Senate will continue working through its calendar, with expected concentration in part on a regulatory bill (H. 3021) sponsored by House Speaker Smith. Other bills — unclear what those may be at this point — will take priority slots with few days ahead

What are other big bills that are still outstanding?

  • Roads: The Senate voted last week to reject House changes made to S. 831, legislation sponsored by the chamber's Transportation Chairman Larry Grooms, R-Berkeley, which largely seeks to modernize state DOT operations, fix congestion and speed up infrastructure work. Grooms and Sen. Sean Bennett, R-Dorchester, and Sen. Overture Walker, D-Richland, were named as Senate conferees. The House has not yet named their negotiators.
  • Consumable hemp/THC drinks: The Senate also refused to concur with House-made changes to consumable hemp/THC drink legislation, H. 3924, sponsored by Rep. Chris Wooten, R-Lexington. Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, Sen. Michael Johnson, R-York, and Sen. Russell Ott, D-Calhoun, will be the Senate's negotiators. The House is expected to name their negotiators early this week.
  • DUI: The House passed S. 52, legislation sponsored by Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, that seeks to strengthen the state's laws over driving under the influence. The Senate is unlikely to agree to all of the House's changes, possibly forcing this bill to a round of negotiations between both chambers.
  • Kratom: The House last week passed H. 4641, sponsored by Rep. Tommy Pope, R-York, which in part regulates kratom by classifying it as a Schedule I controlled substance. The bill has been referred to the Senate Medical Affairs Committee.
  • Charter school accountability: The House amended S. 454, legislation sponsored by Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree, R-Horry, which would put more transparency and oversight over charter school authorizers. The Senate has yet to decide whether it will agree or refuse the House changes.
House Majority Leader Davey Hiott, R-Pickens, speaks with House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, in the House chamber at the South Carolina Statehouse on March 31, 2026.
GAVIN JACKSON
House Majority Leader Davey Hiott, R-Pickens, speaks with House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, in the House chamber at the South Carolina Statehouse on March 31, 2026.

Statehouse daily planner (5/5)

SC House

SC Senate

SC governor

  • 10:30 a.m. — Gov. McMaster to join Assistant Secretary Alex Adams of the U.S. Administration for Children and Families and state Department of Social Services Director Tony Catone, lawmakers and other state leaders to announce at the Statehouse South Carolina’s participation in the "A Home for Every Child"

Statehouse clips from around the state
News From South Carolina
Maayan Schechter
Maayan Schechter (My-yahn Schek-ter) is a news reporter with South Carolina Public Radio and ETV. She worked at South Carolina newspapers for a decade, previously working as a reporter and then editor of The State’s S.C. State House and politics team, and as a reporter at the Aiken Standard and the Greenville News. She grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and graduated from the University of North Carolina-Asheville in 2013.
See stories by Maayan Schechter