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War Room

South Carolina

SC-06 · Jim Clyburn's seat held. Republicans scrapped the 7-0 map for 2026.
Win · May 26
State Senate vote · South Carolina
Clyburn's seat stays. SC Republicans kill the Trump-backed redistricting push.

South Carolina's Republican-led state Senate voted down a mid-decade redistricting plan that would have eliminated Rep. James Clyburn's majority-Black 6th District — defeating a last-minute effort backed by the Trump White House. GOP Sen. Richard Cash: “Neither my conscience nor my common sense will allow me to stop an election that is already underway.” Sen. Tom Davis condemned outsourcing redistricting to “a consultant in Washington, D.C.,” noting the original process took nine months versus weeks for this rushed effort. Early voting is underway. Clyburn holds. SC stays 6-1.

source: nbc news →
Situation Report Updated May 26, 2026
The SC redistricting bill is dead. The Republican-led state Senate rejected the Trump-backed map on May 26, the same day early voting began. Clyburn's seat is safe for 2026.

The South Carolina Senate failed 29–17 on May 12, 2026 on a resolution to extend the session (five Republicans defecting), prompting Gov. McMaster to call a special session by executive order. The House passed a map designed to elect 7 Republicans to 0 Democrats — eliminating Rep. Jim Clyburn's Black-plurality 6th District. In the Senate, a motion to limit debate failed 26–15 on May 22, three votes short of the required 31. UPDATE (May 26): the bill formally died. The Republican-led Senate voted not to advance the new congressional map, with GOP senators citing both the rushed process and the fact that early voting was already underway. Sen. Richard Cash: "Neither my conscience nor my common sense will allow me to stop an election that is already underway." Sen. Tom Davis condemned outsourcing the redistricting process to "a consultant in Washington, D.C.," noting the original 2021 process took nine months versus weeks for this rushed effort. SC-06, held by Rep. Jim Clyburn (D) since 1993, remains intact. The 6-1 map stands.

Situation report · Updated May 26, 2026
Strategic Intelligence Available South Carolina is tracked in our redistricting intelligence database — district-level vulnerabilities, dummymander opportunities, and strategic action.
The District We Held
SC-06 · Held for 2026
South Carolina's 6th Congressional District
Rep. Jim Clyburn · D · Since 1993
The only majority-minority congressional district in South Carolina (Black-plurality at 47.3% Black) and the only Democratic seat in the delegation. Rep. Clyburn, former House Majority Whip and one of the most influential Black legislators in American history, has represented this district for over 30 years. Republicans named a "7-0 map" as their objective and pushed a Trump-backed redraw to get there. The Republican-led Senate refused to advance it on May 26, so the seat holds for 2026. The stakes do not change: without SC-06, South Carolina erases all Black congressional representation despite a Black population of about 25%.
✓ Held for 2026
Census + Context ACS 2023
Black share 43.7% Diluted from majority · S.C. 26.4% · U.S. 13.7%
Median household income $58,458 72¢ on the U.S. dollar
Child poverty 23.5% S.C. 18.0% · U.S. 15.2%
SNAP households 14.1% 1 in 7 households · rural grocery deserts
Organizing anchors Pee Dee Orangeburg Sumter Florence SC State · Claflin · Allen
Recent Coverage
The State · May 22, 2026
SC redistricting bill "a long way" from passing — cloture fails 26–15, early voting begins May 26, window is closing →
Post and Courier · 2026
SC House passes bill opening door to congressional redistricting — with Clyburn's seat in sight →
Post and Courier · 2026
SC Republicans aim for 7-0 congressional delegation — Clyburn seat the only obstacle →
Democracy Docket · May 2026
Post-Callais: which majority-Black districts are most exposed to Republican gerrymanders →
The Charleston Chronicle · 2026
AME Church network mobilizes against the redraw of Clyburn's SC-06 — Mother Emanuel's geography in the crosshairs →
What SC-06 Has Delivered for Black South Carolinians
30+
Years of Black Congressional Representation
Rep. Jim Clyburn has served SC-06 since 1993 — the longest-serving Black congressman in South Carolina history and the only Black member of SC's congressional delegation.
May 14
House Vote to Enable Redistricting
Gov. McMaster called a special session by executive order on May 14, 2026, and the House passed a 7-0 map. On May 26 the Republican-led Senate refused to advance it, so SC-06 stays intact for 2026.
~25%
of South Carolina Is Black
One majority-Black district out of seven congressional seats is the bare minimum. A 7-0 Republican map would make South Carolina one of the most extreme racial gerrymanders in modern American history.
By the Numbers · SC-06

By The Numbers.

Two census measures that ground the fight over SC-06, Rep. Jim Clyburn's Black-plurality seat, which Republicans tried and failed to eliminate in the 2026 special-session redraw.

Black Population

Black residents make up nearly half of SC-06 — 47.3% — making the district Black-plurality and the only majority-minority seat in South Carolina.

The Black share runs roughly 4× the national rate and nearly 2× South Carolina's statewide share — concentrated in Orangeburg, Pee Dee, and Black neighborhoods of Columbia.

SC-06
47.3%
S. Carolina
~25%
U.S.
11.7%
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-year estimates
Black Voting-Age Population

Black residents make up roughly ~44% of SC-06's voting-age electorate, and the seat has sent a Black member to Congress continuously since 1993 — proving that the lines were drawn around an electorate that votes for its own representation.

Clyburn's seat has held continuous Black representation for 32 years on this Black voting-age foundation. The 2026 redraw would have dissolved that base by cracking Columbia east, Orangeburg, and Sumter into surrounding white-majority districts to reach the "7-0 Republican map" a SC lawmaker put on the record. The Republican-led Senate refused to advance it on May 26, and the seat held.

SC-06
~44%
S. Carolina
~24%
U.S.
~12%
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-year estimates · BVAP
Sources & Methodology

Population, voting-age population (VAP), and Black voting-age population (BVAP): U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Partisan lean (PVI) and race ratings: Cook Political Report, with district-level updates following the 2026 redraw cycle. Voter registration and file data: South Carolina State Election Commission public records, supplemented by commercial voter files from Catalist, L2, and TargetSmart. Polling and electoral analysis: Blue Rose Research, Equis Research, Pew Research Center, and Sabato's Crystal Ball (UVA Center for Politics). Map status, SC Senate vote timeline, and litigation: South Carolina General Assembly records, federal court filings, and published positions from NAACP Legal Defense Fund and ACLU of South Carolina. Field intelligence: relayed from named partner organizations through coalition coordination; reflects current operating conditions rather than peer-reviewed analysis.