SC senator considering 2026 bid touts his socially conservative cred to GOP primary voters

COLUMBIA — A Spartanburg County state senator potentially running for governor cast himself to GOP primary voters as a young, staunchly socially conservative candidate.

Sen. Josh Kimbrell of Boiling Springs told more than 60 people Monday night at a Richland County GOP meeting he’ll likely enter the 2026 race to replace term-limited Gov. Henry McMaster.

However, he said, “I’m not formally saying it tonight.”

The 40-year-old senator, who easily won a second term in November, is the third potential candidate in as many months to speak to the Republican faithful in the state’s capital.

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace of the coastal 1st District spoke at the local party’s meeting in January, followed last month by state Sen. Sean Bennett of Summerville.

Beyond a brief bid by former state Treasurer Thomas Ravenel — which he ended four days after announcing — no one has officially entered the governor’s race.

However, other Republicans highly likely to jump in are Attorney General Alan Wilson and Lt. Gov. Pam Evette. U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman of the Fifth District is reportedly also weighing a bid.

Kimbrell noted the unofficial race has already gotten a “little nasty.”

“I don’t love it when it becomes a personal attack,” he said.

Mace has made a habit of taking swipes at both Wilson and Evette — but especially Wilson. A Winthrop Poll released earlier this month indicates why: The attorney general had the highest name recognition, behind only Mace, in a potential six-way field.

Mace has yet to mention Kimbrell, who respondents recognized the least among possible contenders. (The Winthrop Poll’s questionnaire did not include Bennett.)

When asked if he was referring to Mace, Kimbrell said his comment wasn’t toward anyone in particular.

The Spartanburg County lawmaker rose to prominence as host of the conservative Christian talk show “Common Cents” on an Upstate radio station.

In the Senate, he’s led the charge on culture war issues, including fighting for the six-week abortion ban, sponsoring legislation opposed by advocates of LGBTQ South Carolinians, and banning books with sexual content from children’s sections in public libraries, which librarians opposed as censorship. (That proposal, which initially failed, became part of the state budget last year.)

Kimbrell’s no stranger to a crowded primary.

The former chairman of the Spartanburg County GOP made his first attempt at elected office in a 13-way GOP race in 2018 to replace Rep. Trey Gowdy, who wasn’t seeking re-election to the Fourth District. Kimbrell placed fourth in the race ultimately won by then-state Sen. William Timmons of Greenville.

Two years later, Kimbrell ousted state Sen. Glenn Reese, a Democrat who managed to hang on to the seat for three decades as the Upstate district became ruby red. In November, Kimbrell easily defeated a Democrat challenger.

Unlike in 2018, now he has a track record to run on, Kimbrell said.

“It’s one thing to run for office, having never held office, saying ‘I’m going to do this. I’m going to do this. I’m going to do that.’ It’s another thing running for office having done something,” he told reporters afterwards.

Among the achievements Kimbrell touted was as lead sponsor of the question put on November ballots that asked voters whether a single word should change in the South Carolina constitution to specify that “only” citizens can vote.

His fellow GOP senators touted it as a way to ensure no future court ruling in South Carolina allowed noncitizens to vote in local elections, even as they acknowledged no school board or town council in the Palmetto State was trying to do so. The referendum passed with 86% of the vote, though the Legislature has yet to ratify the change.

Kimbrell argued the subtle wording change from “every” to “only a” citizen will further protect the ballot from noncitizens.

“We’re not only not a sanctuary state, but we can’t even let these folks vote in a school board election, which is a good thing,” he told the Richland County GOP.

Kimbrell fielded a pair of questions surrounding education.

When asked by a teacher in Richland 2 School District in suburban Columbia how he plans to help public education, Kimbrell said he’s supported raising teacher salaries as well as providing parents more educational choices with state aid for private tuition.

Noting his own two children are in public schools, Kimbrell said South Carolina’s K-12 schools need to be “smarter” in how they spend money. He characterized administrative jobs at his local high school as “fluff positions.”

“We literally had teachers pay for pencils out of their pocket,” he said, while calling the multiple, higher-paid assistant principals unnecessary.

As Kimbrell spoke, somebody from the crowd yelled “we need DOGE,” a reference to the Department of Government Efficiency spearheaded by Elon Musk that seeks to slash federal spending.

Kimbrell, one of the sponsors of a Senate resolution to create a South Carolina version of the initiative, let out a chuckle as he said, “I don’t disagree.”