The race to replace Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) as the Republican nominee in South Carolina’s 3rd Congressional District will head to a runoff after none of the seven GOP candidates won a majority of the vote in Tuesday’s election.
The Associated Press said at 9:16 p.m. after polls closed at 7 p.m. that Trump-endorsed pastor Mark Burns and nurse Sheri Biggs advanced to a June 25 runoff.
With 76% of the ballots counted, Burns led with 31.5% of the vote, followed by Biggs at 29.5% and state Rep. Stewart Jones at 19.5%.
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The candidates are seeking to replace Duncan, who announced earlier this year he was retiring from Congress and would not seek an eighth term. His exit means the reliably red district that borders northeast Georgia is up for grabs for the first time in more than a decade, and whoever can clinch the Republican nomination will likely cruise to victory in the November general election.
The last time a Democrat won the district was prior to now-Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) flipping the seat in 1994 during a national red wave. He defeated Democratic State Sen. James Bryan Jr. to replace retiring longtime Rep. Butler Derrick (D-SC), a feat that made Graham the first Republican since 1877 to hold the seat.
“At some point in a career, one needs to step aside and allow others to bring fresh ideas and abilities into the fight for liberty,” Duncan said in his retirement announcement.
He was mired in controversy last year after his wife filed for divorce. She accused Duncan of being unfaithful in their marriage and leaving her for a lobbyist, claims that ran counter to the conservative family values that he publicly portrayed.
In 2023, Duncan wrote in a statement posted to social media that his family was “dealing with a difficult and private moment, and I’m not going to comment on a deeply personal matter.”
“My focus is fighting on behalf of the people of South Carolina’s 3rd District,” he said at the time and made reference to a potential looming government shutdown. “I am proud to have one of the most conservative voting records in all of Congress, and that is the approach I will continue taking on behalf of my constituents to fight back against this fiscal insanity.”
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Former President Donald Trump in April endorsed Burns, a longtime ally who ran for the state’s 4th House District in 2022 but lost to Rep. William Timmons (R-SC).
“There are many great Conservatives exploring a run for that seat, but Mark Burns has been with me from the very beginning of our Movement to Make America Great Again,” Trump posted at the time on Truth Social.
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