South Carolina will hold the first Democratic presidential primary in 2028 after a key party panel approved a new nominating calendar on Friday. The decision still needs ratification from the full Democratic National Committee in August.
According to NPR, the DNC's Rules and Bylaws panel recommended that South Carolina hold its primary on January 22, 2028, ahead of Nevada and New Hampshire, two states that have traditionally voted early in the process. New Mexico, Michigan and Virginia were also approved to hold early contests before Super Tuesday, set for March 7, 2028.
The move was pushed by Democrats who want to prioritize Black voters, a reliable and influential voting bloc for the party. Nearly one in four registered voters in South Carolina is Black, according to state voting data. According to AP Vote Cast, 83% of Black voters nationwide backed former Vice President Kamala Harris in the last presidential election.
South Carolina previously led the Democratic presidential primary in 2024, the first time the process did not begin with the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire's primary. Some members of the panel spoke about the southern state's role in former President Joe Biden's 2020 nomination, when Biden picked up his first early state victory in South Carolina before winning other southern states on Super Tuesday.
Not everyone on the panel agreed on South Carolina. Nevada had been a strong contender because the party also wants to prioritize Latino voters, a group that had a significant impact in 2024 when President Trump won reelection. At the end of the meeting, some members raised concerns about Nevada's ability to rapidly process election results, which may have worked against it.
"The place to start is in the West," said David McDonald, a committee member. "The place to start is in Nevada, which offers the best combination of diversity, certainty and opportunity."
Christale Spain, chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party, argued that the party needs to expand its reach geographically. "The South is not the past, we are the future," Spain said. "And if we are serious about changing this country, Democrats have to start winning in the South."
The full DNC will vote on the calendar in August to make it final.
