PolitiFinder

1996 South Carolina U.S. Senate Election

South Carolina · 5 candidates · See every 1996 U.S. Senate race

Who won the 1996 South Carolina U.S. Senate Election?

Strom Thurmond won the 1996 South Carolina U.S. Senate Election. Strom Thurmond received 619,859 popular votes (53.38%). The main challenger was Elliot Springs Close (44%).

See the full head-to-head between Thurmond and Close

Thurmond +9.4 pts · won by 108,908 votes
Strom ThurmondRepublicanWINNER53.38%
619,859 votes
Elliot Springs CloseDemocratic44%
510,951 votes
Richard T. QuillianLibertarian1.12%
12,988 votes
Peter J. AshyReform0.84%
9,740 votes
Annette C. EstesNatural Law0.66%
7,693 votes
Popular-vote totals for U.S. Senate elections come from the MIT Election Data and Science Lab (1976–2024).

Data last verified July 28, 2026.