A Brief History Of The South Carolina Republican Party

By Marley Bassett

Beginnings of the SC GOP

While the national Republican Party was established in the 1850s, the South Carolina branch was not formed until after the Civil War in 1867. During this Reconstruction period, only Black males and white males over 21 who had not aided the Confederacy were eligible to vote. This set the stage for the shaping of political alignmen…