Orangeburg, South Carolina – On the eve of South Carolina’s Democratic presidential primary, Vice President Harris emphasized the importance of the leadoff position in the state.
“South Carolinians, you are the nation’s first primary, and President Biden and I are counting on you,” Harris said at a campaign event at South Carolina State University.
“Are you ready to make your voice heard?” he asked a crowd at a historically black college Friday.
For the first time, South Carolina, where black voters play a large role in state Democratic politics, is leading the party’s official presidential nominating calendar.
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Vice President Kamala Harris headlines a Biden/Harris reelection campaign event on the eve of the state’s Democratic presidential primary in Orangeburg, South Carolina, on February 2, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
And much of the credit goes to President Biden, who engineered to overturn the Democratic National Committee’s long nominating calendar to put the Palmetto State in first place.
Biden: “If you ever doubt that we have the power to change America, remember this: You’ve proven it. You’re the reason I’m president. That’s right. You are the reason why Kamala Harris is a historic vice president,” he said last weekend, speaking at a major gathering of the South Carolina Democratic Party.
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Four years ago, the then-former vice president was reeling after finishing fourth in the Iowa caucuses and fifth in the New Hampshire primary.
Biden bounced back, finishing a distant second to Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Nevada caucuses, and also won a landslide victory in the South Carolina primary. Biden’s victory over his remaining Democratic rivals was largely fueled by the support of longtime Democratic congressman James Clyburn of South Carolina, who helped him win the party’s nomination and ultimately gave him momentum toward winning the White House.
President Joe Biden speaks at the first-in-the-nation gala held by the South Carolina Democratic Party at the State Fairgrounds in Columbia, South Carolina, Saturday, January 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Artie Walker Jr.)
For years, the NDP is not representative of the party as a whole because Iowa and New Hampshire, states that have led the party’s nomination calendar for half a century, have large white populations and few major urban areas. I have criticized him. Nevada and South Carolina, which voted third and fourth on the calendar in recent cycles, are far more diverse than Iowa or New Hampshire.
Republicans did not make any major changes to the 2024 schedule, but the DNC overwhelmingly approved Biden’s proposed calendar a year ago that would put South Carolina at the top of the list. The president and supporters of the new calendar argued that it would empower minority voters whom Democrats have long trusted and sometimes taken for granted.
Many political analysts also saw the move as Biden’s way of thanking Clyburn and South Carolina for their role in the 2020 election.
On February 29, 2020, former Vice President Joe Biden was joined by his wife Jill and South Carolina House of Representatives Jim Clyburn as Mr. Biden gave his victory speech after winning an overwhelming victory in the Democratic presidential primary in South Carolina. Deputies stand aside. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Iowa ultimately complied with the DNC’s request, while New Hampshire complied with a half-century-old state law requiring presidential primaries to be prioritized.
New Hampshire’s primary elections for both parties were held on January 23, with the Democratic Party’s campaign not being sanctioned by the DNC and no contest for delegates.
Biden has not applied to have his name placed on New Hampshire’s primary ballot and has not campaigned in the state. But thanks to a well-funded write-in effort by top Granite State Democrats, he still won more than 60% of the vote in the race.
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However, Mr. Biden is on the ballot in South Carolina, and Mr. Biden’s leading primary candidate, Representative Dean Phillips of Minnesota, and best-selling author, are in the White House election for the second consecutive year. The same goes for Marianne Williamson, a spiritual advisor who is running for office.
Phillips campaigned extensively in New Hampshire, where he won nearly 20% of the vote, but appears to have waved the white flag in South Carolina. Phillips last campaigned in the Palmetto State a week ago.
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minnesota) speaks at the South Carolina Democratic Party’s first national banquet in Columbia on Saturday, January 27, 2024. Rep. Phillips, R-Columbia, S.C., speaks at the South Carolina Democratic Party’s first national banquet in Columbia, South Carolina. I have objections to the speaker, President Joe Biden, on the following points: This year’s Democratic presidential candidate. (AP Photo/Meg Kinard)
Biden is again expected to lead South Carolina by a wide margin.
“This primary is contested, but it’s not competitive,” South Carolina Democratic Party Chairman Cristale Spain told Fox News on Friday.
He then spotlighted the importance of voting first on the calendar, saying, “It means that for the first time in the history of this country, Black voters will have their voices heard first in the process. “It’s not about voters in the South being able to vote,” she said. “First. Local voters will be the first to vote. So this is a huge deal.”
Fox News’ Nick Rojas contributed to this report
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