COLUMBIA, S.C. _ Buoyed by recent job growth, falling unemployment and support of President Donald Trump, South Carolina voters Tuesday gave Gov. Henry McMaster a victory that he has sought for years.
McMaster secured his first full term as governor, defeating the Democratic candidate, state Rep. James Smith. The Associated Press called the race for McMaster with 40 percent of precincts reporting.
The 71-year-old former lieutenant governor became governor in 2017 with Nikki Haley resigned to join the Trump administration as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
McMaster ran for governor in 2010 but lost to Haley in the Republican primary. He was elected lieutenant governor in 2014.
Tuesday was the first time South Carolina candidates for governor and lieutenant governor were elected as a team, with businesswoman Pamela Evette set to become the state's lieutenant governor in January.
McMaster and Evette promised to continue to strengthen South Carolina's economy through lower taxes, fewer regulations, a leaner and more efficient state government, safer schools and enhanced workforce-development efforts.
Dean Brown, a retired economics, government and law teacher from Spartanburg, said he's long supported McMaster because he's pro-business.
"He's not afraid to approach somebody and ask them for their business," he said, adding Evette, McMaster's running mate, is "very impressive and really smart."
On Trump, Brown said he'd "rather him be nice," but he can forgive Trump's harsh rhetoric because he's doing good things as president.
Leah Norman, 21, a hairstylist from West Columbia, said she backed McMaster because of his conservative values, and likes that he "tries to keep a low profile."
"I feel like he's really focused on South Carolina," Norman said.
McMaster pitched himself as the jobs governor. He argued that voters are better served by keeping him in office, pointing to job creation and enthusiasm from companies looking to expand in the state.
Companies have promised to add about 24,000 new jobs and make $8 billion in new investment in the state since McMaster took office. Meanwhile, the state's unemployment rate has dropped to its lowest in 50 years.
But while unemployment fell, labor participation has decreased, income growth has been sluggish and employers struggle to fill skilled jobs, Smith and his running mate, state Rep. Mandy Powers Norrell, argued in debates and on the campaign trail.
McMaster was the country's first statewide elected official to endorse Trump's 2016 presidential candidacy, and he leaned heavily on his close relationship to the president to prevail in a Republican GOP primary runoff over businessman John Warren, a political novice.
McMaster constantly reminded conservative voters of his close ties to a president who, he said, valued South Carolina and would listen to his concerns. The governor said he has bent Trump's ear to protect the state from tariffs and its coastline from offshore drilling, voicing his concerns to the president directly, with mixed results.
