South Carolina

The South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously upheld the six-week abortion ban in May 2025. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that South Carolina can defund Planned Parenthood from Medicaid. Planned Parenthood’s president told NPR the ruling would let 17 states do the same. The state refuses Medicaid expansion while rural hospitals operate in the red.

Public schools are underfunded by half a billion dollars per year. Governor McMaster is term-limited, and the open governor’s race decides who inherits all of it.

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Reproductive Rights

South Carolina enforces a six-week abortion ban, before most people know they are pregnant. The state Supreme Court unanimously upheld the law in May 2025, ruling that state law’s definition of “fetal heartbeat” applies when an ultrasound first detects cardiac activity.

Then in June 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in South Carolina’s favor in the Planned Parenthood defunding case. The Court held that individual Medicaid patients cannot sue to enforce their right to choose a provider. The case originated from McMaster’s 2018 executive order blocking Planned Parenthood from providing family planning services under Medicaid.

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Public Schools

The South Carolina Supreme Court struck down the original voucher program 3-2 in September 2024: “After we clear away the window dressing, we can see the Act funnels public funds to the direct benefit of private schools. This is what our constitution forbids.”

Lawmakers passed a new voucher program in May 2025, designed to sidestep the ruling. The House voted 73-32. For 2025-26, up to 10,000 students receive $7,500 scholarships (families under 300% FPL). For 2026-27, the cap rises to 15,000 students with eligibility expanding to 500% FPL ($160,750 for a family of four). The program hit its 10,000-student cap with thousands more rejected.

South Carolina already underfunds its own mandated expenses for public schools by half a billion dollars per year. The ACLU of South Carolina says vouchers mostly help wealthier families.

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Healthcare and Benefits

South Carolina is one of 10 states that refuse Medicaid expansion. In non-expansion states, 52.2% of rural hospitals are in the red. Multiple expansion bills were introduced in 2025-2026, including Bill 3377, which would have put an advisory referendum on the 2026 ballot asking voters whether to expand.

The state’s Medicaid agency submitted a request to expand coverage to working low-income parents. The federal reconciliation bill creates new uncertainty for rural hospitals. If reimbursement rates drop while costs rise, sustaining those hospitals becomes impossible.

Two “billion-dollar” disasters hit South Carolina in 2025: Tropical Storm Chantal and an October coastal storm system. NOAA’s hurricane forecast calls for 8-14 named storms, 3-6 hurricanes in 2026.

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Voting Access

South Carolina has open primaries. H. 5183 would let only voters registered with a party vote in that party’s primary, but it has not left the House Judiciary Committee. A ranked choice voting ban (H. 3386) is also still in committee.

The SC NAACP and disabled voters filed a federal lawsuit challenging state restrictions on voter assistance, including limits on who can help and how many voters they can assist. Plaintiffs argue the laws violate the Voting Rights Act.

The Heritage Act expansion bill, which the Senate approved in April 2026, would extend protections to all public memorials statewide and ban QR codes or informational plaques placed near monuments to provide historical context.

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2026 Elections in South Carolina

McMaster is term-limited. On November 3, the nominees for governor are Alan Wilson (R); Jermaine Johnson (D).

Wilson is the current attorney general, so the attorney general’s office is also open. That office decides which multistate lawsuits South Carolina joins.

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What You Can Do in South Carolina

1. Check your voter registration. Verify at scvotes.gov before the November 3 general election. South Carolina primaries are open, though a pending bill would close them.

2. Ask governor candidates about Medicaid. South Carolina refuses expansion while rural hospitals operate in the red. Make them answer.

3. Know your school district’s voucher impact. 10,000 vouchers went out this year. Ask your school board whether your district lost funding and what it means for staffing.

4. Track the voter assistance lawsuit. If you need help voting due to disability, the ACLU of South Carolina tracks the case.

5. Prepare for hurricane season. Two billion-dollar disasters hit in 2025. NOAA forecasts 3-6 hurricanes in 2026. Know your evacuation zone and insurance status.