The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina and serves as commander-in-chief of the U.S. state's military forces. The current governor is Henry McMaster.

Governors

South Carolina was one of the original Thirteen Colonies and was admitted as a state on May 23, 1788. Before it declared its independence, South Carolina was a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain. It seceded from the Union on December 20, 1860, and was a founding member of the Confederate States of America on February 4, 1861. Following the end of the American Civil War, South Carolina during Reconstruction was part of the Second Military District, which exerted some control over governor appointments and elections. South Carolina was readmitted to the Union on July 9, 1868. Under the first constitution of South Carolina, a president of the state was elected for a term of two years, who then could not run again until four years had passed. The 1865 constitution briefly increased terms to four years, but that was changed in the 1868 constitution back to two years, with no term limit. An amendment in 1926 increased term lengths to four years, but limited governors to not being able to succeed themselves; an amendment in 1981 allowed governors to succeed themselves once. The 1776 constitution created the office of vice-president, renamed to lieutenant governor in 1778, to succeed to the governorship should it become vacant.