“We have someone in the White House that wants Republicans to ignore the Constitutional principles for which this current map was drawn. A critical number of Republicans did not believe in putting a man over the law.
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South Carolina Senate Rejects Trump's Redistricting Push, Saving Clyburn's Seat
May 26, 2026
On May 26, 2026, the South Carolina state Senate rejected President Trump's push to redraw congressional maps before the midterm elections, preserving Rep. Jim Clyburn's majority-Black district. Twelve Republican state senators joined Democrats to defeat cloture on a special session called by Gov. Henry McMaster, citing that early voting had already begun with record turnout. The failed redistricting attempt would have dismantled Clyburn's 6th district — held by the longtime Democratic congressman for over three decades — in an attempt to give Republicans an additional House seat ahead of the midterms. Republican state senators who broke ranks cited concerns about the rushed timeline, the fact that voters were already casting ballots, and the outsized role of Washington consultants in driving the process. The outcome was a significant bipartisan rebuke of Trump's aggressive redistricting campaign, and leaves more than a dozen Congressional Black Caucus members' districts potentially vulnerable in other states where similar efforts continue.
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“The vote today reflected what South Carolinians would like to see, and that is a constitutional process.
Background (1)— earlier statements that set the stage▸
“I am embarrassed that so many people in our legislature will allow strangers in Washington to tell them what to do, when to do it, and how to do it.