1872 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina

none February 2026 September 2023 The 1872 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 5, 1872, to select five Representatives for two-year terms from the state of South Carolina. The three incumbents who ran were re-elected and the two open seats were retained by the Republicans. The composition of the state delegation thus remained solely Republican. 1st congressional district Incumbent Republican Congressman Joseph Rainey of the 1st congressional district, in office since 1870, was unopposed in his bid for re-election. General election results South Carolina's 1st congressional district election results, 1872 Republican Party (United States) Joseph Rainey (incumbent) 19,765 100.0 +36.5 No party Write-Ins 3 0.0 0.0 19,762 100.0 +73.0 19,768 |- | Republican Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Republican hold |- 2nd congressional district Incumbent Republican Congressman Robert C. De Large of the 2nd congressional district, in office since 1871, declined to run for re-election. Alonzo J. Ransier was nominated by the Republicans and defeated Independent Republican challenger William Gurney in the general election. General election results South Carolina's 2nd congressional district election results, 1872 Republican Party (United States) Alonzo J. Ransier 20,061 75.4 -20.9 |- | style="color:inherit;background:#ff00ff" | | Independent Republican | William Gurney | align="right" | 6,549 | align="right" | 24.6 | align="right" | +24.6 |- No party Write-Ins 11 0.0 -1.1 13,512 50.8 -47.9 26,621 |- | Republican Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Republican hold |- 3rd congressional district Incumbent Republican Congressman Robert B. Elliott of the 3rd congressional district, in office since 1871, defeated two Democratic candidates in the general election. General election results South Carolina's 3rd congressional district election results, 1872 Republican Party (United States) Robert B. Elliott (incumbent) 20,564 92.5 +33.0 Democratic Party (United States) W.H. McCaw 1,094 4.9 +4.9 Democratic Party (United States) Samuel McGowan 411 1.9 +1.9 No party Write-Ins 166 0.7 +0.7 18,893 87.6 +68.6 22,235 |- | Republican Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Republican hold |- 4th congressional district Incumbent Republican Congressman Alexander S. Wallace of the 4th congressional district, in office since 1870, defeated Democratic challenger Benjamin Franklin Perry. General election results South Carolina's 4th congressional district election results, 1872 Republican Party (United States) Alexander S. Wallace (incumbent) 14,590 53.1 -2.2 Democratic Party (United States) Benjamin Franklin Perry 12,879 46.9 +2.5 No party Write-Ins 3 0.0 -0.3 1,711 6.2 -4.7 27,472 |- | Republican Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Republican hold |- At-large district The state unsuccessfully applied to have a fifth member seated in 1871 in the House of Representatives. Following apportionment from the 1870 census, the state was granted an extra seat and an At-large election was used to decide the fifth member. Republican Richard H. Cain defeated Independent Republican L.E. Johnson in the election and became the only member from South Carolina to be elected from an At-large district. General election results South Carolina's at-large congressional district election results, 1872 Republican Party (United States) Richard H. Cain 71,321 72.0 -28.0 |- | style="color:inherit;background:#ff00ff" | | Independent Republican | Lewis E. Johnson | align="right" | 26,394 | align="right" | 26.6 | align="right" | +26.6 |- No party Write-Ins 1,404 1.4 +1.4 44,927 45.4 +45.4 99,119 |- | Republican Party (United States) | colspan=5 |Republican gain |- See also United States House of Representatives elections, 1872 South Carolina gubernatorial election, 1872 South Carolina's congressional districts References "Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina." Reports and Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina at the Regular Session, 1871-'72. Columbia, SC: Republican Printing Company, 1872, pp. 62, 64–67. 1872 United States House of Representatives South Carolina