South Carolina gubernatorial election, 1870

The 1870 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on October 10, 1870 to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Governor Robert Kingston Scott easily won reelection based entirely on the strength of the black vote in the state. The election was significant because it proved to the white conservatives of the state that political harmony between the white and black races was impossible and only through a straightout Democratic attempt would they be able to regain control of state government.

The Radical Republican reforms and corrupt schemes initiated by Governor Scott after he assumed office in 1868 infuriated the white population of the state. However, the Democratic Party of the state was so thoroughly defeated in the previous gubernatorial election that the white conservatives realized the only way to seriously contest the election of 1870 was through the formation of a new political party. They organized a conference in Columbia on March 16 to formulate policies for the upcoming campaign. From the results of the previous election, the white conservatives concluded that running a white supremacist campaign in a state where the blacks were in the majority was futile and ineffective. The conference thus adopted two policies that would recognize blacks as equals to the whites and ensure their protection under the law. The only other resolution adopted was for the campaign to be waged against radicalism and in favor of good and honest government.

A nominating convention was held in Columbia on June 15 to select nominees for the state offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor. In addition, a committee was formed at the convention to finalize the platform that the party would run on in the fall campaign. The chairman of the committee, Matthew Butler, submitted a paper with positions that would enforce the Fifteenth Amendment, uphold the existing laws enacted by the Radical Republicans, and to restore honesty and accountability in the state government. Furthermore, it was recommended that the new political party be called the Union Reform Party of South Carolina. Richard B. Carpenter, a carpetbagger judge from Charleston of questionable reputation, won the nomination for Governor although he had never sought the position.

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