Republican Party

South Carolina is accustomed to increased attention in the years leading up to presidential elections, given that the state has hosted the South's first voting contests for several of the last cycles. Yet the 2024 campaign season is starting to feel different. For one, Democrats have elevated South Carolina to the top of their presidential primary calendar, leapfrogging Iowa and New Hampshire. On the Republican side, there could potentially be two homegrown South Carolina presidential candidates in the race.

As Sen. Tim Scott weighs a potential 2024 presidential candidacy, the South Carolina Republican was in Iowa on Wednesday delivering a message of "a new American sunrise." It's a positive vision that sets him apart from some possible rivals who have focused more on railing against cultural divides. "I see 330 million Americans getting back to celebrating our shared blessings again, tolerating our differences again, and having each other's backs again," Scott plans to say at Drake University in Des Moines, according to advance excerpts provided to The Associated Press.

South Carolina Republicans tallied key victories on a night when the GOP nationwide struggled to generate the wins historically associated with a midterm election under an opposing party's president. They won the governor's race by the largest margin in over 30 years and reached a supermajority in the legislature. South Carolina GOP officials attribute their success in part to a historically large ground campaign, strong candidates at the top and record straight-ticket voting. After sustaining such great losses, some state Democrats are questioning the enthusiasm among the party's base.

The White House and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say a Republican-led proposal to ban abortion nationwide after 15 weeks would endanger the health of women and have severe consequences for physicians. The measure introduced last week by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina proposes a nationwide ban that would allow rare exceptions. The legislation has almost no chance of becoming law in the Democratic-controlled Congress. GOP leaders didn't immediately embrace it and Democrats are pointing to the proposal as an alarming signal of where Republicans would try to go if they were to win control of the Congress in November.

Republican candidates have given wildly differing responses to South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham's plan to ban abortion nationwide at 15 weeks. A Republican Senate challenger in Colorado describes the proposed ban as "reckless." GOP Senate contenders in Georgia and Arizona have quickly pledged their support. And in Pennsylvania and Nevada, Republican Senate nominees are avoiding taking firm positions. The explosive issue threatens to upend the GOP's overwhelming political advantages just eight weeks before Election Day. Democrats have been quick to point to the measure to warn that handing control of Congress to Republicans could lead to a broader erosion of rights.

Upending the midterm elections, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has introduced a nationwide abortion ban. The bill would prohibit abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the physical health of the mother. The legislation introduced Tuesday is sending shockwaves through both parties with just weeks before voters go to the polls. Graham's own Republican colleagues did not immediately embrace his abortion ban bill, which has almost no chance of becoming law in the Democratic-held Congress.

Prosecutors in Atlanta say U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham may be able to provide insight into the extent of any coordinated efforts to influence the results of the 2020 general election in Georgia. They argued in a federal court hearing Wednesday that that's why they need Graham to testify before a special grand jury. The panel is investigating whether former President Donald Trump and his allies committed crimes as they sought to overturn his narrow election loss in Georgia. Lawyers for Graham argued that his position as a U.S. senator protects him from having to appear before the special grand jury.

Former Vice President Mike Pence is making another trip to drum up support among abortion opponents in the early-voting state of South Carolina. Pence will give a keynote address at the May fundraising banquet for the Carolina Pregnancy Center. That's according to a copy of an invitation obtained by The Associated Press. The organization has become a regular stop for GOP presidential hopefuls. Last year, Pence chose the fundraiser of another conservative Christian nonprofit in South Carolina as the scene of his first public address since the end of the Trump administration.

Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley is being feted at The Citadel, where a Republican group is making her the first woman to receive its highest honor. It's the former South Carolina governor's first speech in her home state since departing the Trump administration. On Thursday night, Haley will receive the Nathan Hale Patriot Award, an honor that comes along with a replica Revolutionary War musket. Previous recipients include Donald Trump in 2015, former White House adviser Steve Bannon in 2018 and then-Vice President Mike Pence last year. As Haley ponders her next political steps, the setting is a well-worn stop for politicians seeking exposure in the first-in-the-South presidential primary state.