Rep. Ralph Norman becomes the seventh Republican representative to announce a gubernatorial bid for 2026

By

Briana Ryan

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) announced on July 27, 2025, that he will run for governor of South Carolina in 2026 rather than another term in the U.S. House of Representatives. Incumbent Gov. Henry McMaster (R) is term-limited.

As of July 22, 2025, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the seat Solid Republican. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Republican.

During an event announcing his campaign, Norman said, “I am running for governor to shake things up, clean up Columbia, and finally take down the corrupt political establishment once and for all. […] I owe nothing to the lobbyists. I owe nothing to the Columbia bureaucratic elite. My allegiance is to you, the people of South Carolina.”

In 2017, Norman ran for his first term in the House in South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District after Mick Mulvaney (R) resigned to serve as director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) during President Donald Trump’s (R) first administration. Norman defeated Archie Parnell (D) 51% to 48% in the general election.

In his four subsequent re-election bids, Norman won by 15 percentage points in 2018, 20 percentage points in 2020, 29 percentage points in 2022, and 28 percentage points in 2024.

As of July 22, 2025, The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the seat Solid Republican. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Republican.

As of July 28, 2025, 25 members of the U.S. Congress—seven senators and 18 representatives—have announced they will not seek re-election to their current seats in 2026.

Of the 18 representatives not seeking re-election:

  • Three—two Democrats and one Republican—are retiring from public office.
  • Eight—five Democrats and three Republicans—are running for the U.S. Senate.
  • Seven—all Republicans—are running for governor.

Compared to the last four election cycles, there were 12 retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 14 in 2022, 11 in 2020, and 13 in 2018.

Between January 2011 and July 28, 2025, Ballotpedia followed 372 announcements from Senate and House members who announced they would not seek re-election. January had seen the highest number of announcements of any month at 69. The fewest announcements took place in August at 15.