The 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The
primary elections were held on June 10 and the
runoff elections were held two weeks later on June 24. The composition of the state delegation before the election was four
Republicans and two
Democrats.
All seats were considered safe for their incumbent parties except for districts 1 and 2. This was the last time that Democrats won more than one congressional district from South Carolina until 2018.
Overview
United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 2008[1]
Incumbent Republican Congressman
Henry E. Brown, Jr. defeated Democratic candidate Linda Ketner by a surprisingly thin margin to win a fifth term in Congress. Ketner's performance was the strongest performance by a Democrat that Brown had seen in his career and was made all the more surprising by the fact that she was openly lesbian and the 1st district, stretching across the coast of South Carolina, was strongly conservative.
South Carolina's 1st congressional district election, 2008
Incumbent Republican Congressman
Joe Wilson defeated Democrat and
Iraq War Veteran Rob Miller by the thinnest margin of his electoral career. Miller's performance in this conservative district rooted in eastern and southern
South Carolina was surprising, though ultimately was not strong enough to unseat Wilson in his bid for a fifth term.
South Carolina's 2nd congressional district election, 2008
Though two of his fellow Republican Congressman faced tougher-than-expected bids for re-election, incumbent Republican Congressman
J. Gresham Barrett easily dispatched Democratic nominee
Jane Ballard Dyer, a pilot, in this staunchly conservative district based in western
South Carolina.
South Carolina's 3rd congressional district election, 2008
Incumbent Republican Congressman easily defeated Democratic candidate Paul Corden and Green Party candidate C. Faye Walters in this very conservative district rooted in
Upstate South Carolina.
South Carolina's 4th congressional district election, 2008
Long-serving incumbent Democratic Congressman
John Spratt has been able to maintain popularity in this conservative district based in northern
South Carolina, enabling to repeatedly win re-election despite the national mood. This year proved no different, with Spratt easily winning a fourteenth term over Republican challenger Albert Spencer and Constitution Party candidate Frank Waggoner.
South Carolina's 5th congressional district election, 2008
Incumbent Democratic Congressman
Jim Clyburn, the
House Majority Whip, easily won a ninth term in this very liberal, African-American majority district in central South Carolina. Clyburn won re-election over Republican Nancy Harrelson by the largest margin out of anyone in the South Carolina congressional delegation.
South Carolina's 6th congressional district election, 2008