South Carolina’s 4th District House Race 2026

South Carolina Republicans returned to the polls Tuesday to pick a nominee for the Senate seat long held by the late Lindsey Graham, who died in July after winning renomination in June. Sen. Darline Graham, appointed to fill her brother's term and backed by President Trump and Sen. Tim Scott, faced Rep. Ralph Norman in a runoff after neither cleared a majority in the Aug. 11 primary; third-place finisher Rep. Russell Fry endorsed Graham. The winner faces Democrat Annie Andrews in the fall.

In Georgia's 13th Congressional District near Atlanta, Democrats Everton Blair and Marcye Scott, daughter of late Rep. David Scott, competed in a runoff to serve the remainder of Scott's term after topping a five-candidate field in July. Neither is seeking the full term beginning in 2027; that contest will pit Democratic state Rep. Jasmine Clark against Republican Jonathan Chavez in November. Both races drew attention as tests of turnout and party strength ahead of the 2026 midterms, now 70 days off.

South Carolina schools Superintendent Ellen Weaver is running for reelection, facing Democrat Sylvia Wright in a race that is competitive in fundraising but has favored Republicans since 2011. Weaver touts gains in reading and math, a push for school safety, and expanded career pathways, while defending the state's three-year-old voucher program that provides over $7,600 per student for private school or homeschool expenses. Critics, including Wright, say the program lacks accountability and mostly benefits families who could already afford private schooling; a recent cyberattack froze vendor payments. Weaver's tenure has also drawn controversy over book bans, cutting AP African American Studies, and aligning with conservative groups like PragerU amid broader public-school enrollment decline.

Greenville City Council voted 5-1 on Sept. 29 to adopt nonpartisan primaries as the city's new election method, ending decades of partisan "D" and "R" labels on local ballots. Under the new system, all candidates will run in a single primary each June, with the top two advancing to the November general election. Council member Lillian Brock Flemming cast the lone dissenting vote in protest, while Wil Brasington recused himself due to his mayoral campaign.

The switch was mandated by a state law passed this year abolishing partisan primaries for cities with populations over 39,000, affecting only Greenville and Florence. Many council members said they weren't opposed to nonpartisan elections in principle but resented the decision being made in Columbia rather than locally, citing South Carolina's home-rule tradition. Greenville had considered the same change in 2015 before public backlash reversed it. The new rules take effect as the city heads toward its first open mayoral race in 32 years, with observers split on whether nonpartisan contests will favor well-funded candidates or broaden the field of contenders.

A Spartanburg County, South Carolina, woman is facing two counts of attempted murder after deputies said she stabbed her two young children more than 50 times combined. Deputies responded to a home on Bud Arthur Drive on a Saturday afternoon and found a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old severely injured and covered in blood; officials said some wounds were deep enough to cut to the bone. The 6-year-old's injuries were especially severe, with officials warning he could face amputation of fingers or an arm.

Authorities said the children's mother, 35-year-old Taylor Gosnell, carried out the attack early that morning before the children were found alone after the 6-year-old called his grandmother saying he was hungry. Gosnell was later taken for a mental health evaluation and attempted to flee before being handcuffed. She was denied bond and also faces pending child endangerment charges from 2024. Both children are hospitalized in stable condition and expected to recover.

Authorities in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, have charged 35-year-old Taylor Gosnell with two counts of attempted murder after her two young children, ages 3 and 6, were found with roughly 50 combined stab wounds, some down to the bone. Deputies were called to the family's home on Bud Arthur Bridge Road on Sept. 26 after the children's grandmother said the six-year-old called saying his mother was not home and the siblings were hungry. The grandmother and a family friend went to the house, found the children with severe injuries, and called 911.

Investigators said the children were attacked overnight with a kitchen knife and a blunt object, and the home was found in disarray. Gosnell returned while deputies were on scene, was taken for a mental health evaluation after attempting to flee, and later requested an attorney when questioned. She faces additional weapons charges and is being held without bond. Both children remain hospitalized and are in protective custody.

A police officer with the Pacolet Police Department in South Carolina has been arrested on multiple charges, including prostitution, a crime against a federally chartered financial institution, and obstruction of justice. Fredrick Trent Payne, 43, was taken into custody after the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division determined he paid $203 via debit card for sexual acts at a Spartanburg massage parlor in early May 2026.

Investigators also found Payne filed a false fraud claim with his credit union days later, claiming unauthorized use of funds he had in fact spent himself, resulting in an account overdraft. He is further accused of making false statements to state investigators later that month. Payne was booked into the Spartanburg County Detention Center. He previously worked for the Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office, which fired him in 2024, before joining the Pacolet department. The South Carolina Attorney General's Office is prosecuting the case.

The South Carolina Arts Commission has been engulfed in controversy after board members moved to deny operating grants to the Greenville Gay Men's Chorus and Proud Mary Theatre Company, citing concerns tied to a Trump executive order on gender identity. The board required only the two LGBTQ+-focused groups to re-prove their artistic merit, later adopting a vague resolution barring funding for work that "promotes any ideology." After months of delay and an accelerated, lightly attended vote, the commission denied both groups' funding on Oct. 1. The ACLU and arts advocates called the process discriminatory. Board chair Flavia Harton and commissioner Russell Parks, who had pushed the policy, both resigned. The commission later also denied a grant to an emerging Mexican-American artist under the same ideology rule.

South Carolina reports more than 30,000 intimate partner violence cases annually and has ranked among the top 10 states for the rate of women murdered by men in 23 of the past 25 years. Since 2009, at least 37 officers and 99 civilians have been injured or killed responding to domestic violence calls statewide, including Columbia Officer Christopher DeLong, fatally shot in August by a man accused of violating a restraining order.

While overall domestic violence reports fell 5 percent in 2024, intimate partner homicide rates climbed 3.3 percent that year and 23 percent over the past two decades. Greenville County recorded the most officer-involved shootings tied to domestic calls (42 since 2009) and the most intimate partner homicides in 2024. Black women face more than twice the homicide risk of white women in these cases, and nearly half of female homicides between 2017 and 2021 stemmed from intimate partner violence. Advocates note many incidents go unreported due to fear, financial dependence, or shame. Officers now undergo extensive academy training, including scenario-based exercises, to prepare for the unpredictable nature of these calls.

Aiken City Council unanimously approved a resolution asking the South Carolina Supreme Court to authorize a homeless court for the city. The next step is a Dec. 3 presentation to the state's Access to Justice Commission, which will recommend whether the chief justice should sign an order creating the court. Similar courts already operate in Charleston, Columbia, Greenville, Rock Hill, Myrtle Beach and Gaffney, handling non-violent misdemeanor cases for unsheltered residents through service-based alternative sentencing rather than traditional prosecution.

City officials, including the city manager, solicitor and public safety director, back the plan, which is projected to cost $50,000 to $60,000 annually; $30,000 has already been budgeted. If approved, the court would launch in 2027 amid a growing local unsheltered population.

Spartanburg County Council approved an amended 12-month moratorium on new data centers on Sept. 25, softening an earlier blanket ban proposed after citizen backlash over a potential project on Jones Road and the existing NorthMark data center. The amended version carved out exemptions for former industrial sites and industrial parks, and excluded data centers under 65 megawatts.

After the meeting adjourned and attendees left, council reportedly reconvened to "reconsider" elements of the ordinance without public notice. The next day, the county posted a summary on Facebook reflecting a more restrictive version than what had actually passed, which a county spokeswoman attributed to a "scrivener's error," saying council would formally re-adopt the online version in October. A veteran press attorney called the reconvening an illegal meeting requiring advance notice, arguing the original vote remains legally in effect. Council members largely declined to comment, and a local resident who witnessed the meeting's end said any second gathering would have happened within minutes of adjournment.