He couldn't afford to hurt one by endorsing only the other
In the shifting terrain of American political loyalty, Donald Trump has chosen not to choose — endorsing both candidates in South Carolina's Republican gubernatorial runoff as a way of preserving influence without risking loss. The move, applied before in Missouri and Arizona, reflects a leader navigating the limits of his own authority, aware that the currency of endorsement, once seemingly inexhaustible, now carries real risk of devaluation. Tuesday's contest between Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson will offer another data point in the ongoing question of how much a former and current political titan can still bend the will of his party's voters.
- Trump's dual endorsement of two candidates in the same race signals not confidence but caution — a hedge from a man who once moved Republican primaries with a single post.
- The runoff has turned bitter and personal, with Evette and Wilson trading accusations of dishonesty in their final debate while each claims a different kind of legitimacy — outsider energy versus institutional record.
- Wilson has absorbed endorsements from eliminated rivals Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, as well as Ted Cruz, creating a coalition that complicates Evette's path despite her first-place primary finish.
- Trump's recent endorsement record is uneven: a loss in Iowa to a MAHA-aligned outsider, a defeat in Georgia's gubernatorial runoff, but wins in Alabama and Georgia's Senate races — the ledger is mixed and the pattern is murky.
- Whoever wins Tuesday becomes the near-certain next governor of a state that hasn't elected a Democrat in nearly three decades, making the runoff the real election — and Trump's influence its most visible test.
On Friday, Donald Trump announced via Truth Social that he was endorsing both Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson in South Carolina's Republican gubernatorial runoff — a dual endorsement he justified by saying he couldn't bear to hurt either candidate by choosing only one. The move was unconventional but not unprecedented. Trump had already applied the same logic in Arizona's 1st Congressional District, and in Missouri's 2022 Senate race he famously endorsed "ERIC," a name shared by both leading candidates, allowing each to claim his blessing.
Evette had finished first in the crowded initial primary, with Wilson placing second. The field had included Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman and businessman Rom Reddy, but none secured a majority, sending the top two to a runoff. Both Mace and Norman subsequently backed Wilson, as did Sen. Ted Cruz. The race grew sharp in its final stretch — the candidates' last debate devolved into mutual accusations of dishonesty. Wilson ran on his record as a combat veteran, prosecutor, and attorney general, arguing Evette's lieutenant governorship was largely ceremonial. Evette countered by casting herself as a businesswoman and outsider, framing Wilson as a career politician.
The stakes extended beyond South Carolina's borders. With the state having gone without a Democratic governor for 28 years, the runoff winner would be a heavy favorite against Democratic nominee Jermaine Johnson in November. But the race had also become a referendum on Trump's endorsement power — a force that has shown real limits lately. Three weeks prior, his last-minute backing of Iowa Rep. Randy Feenstra failed to prevent a narrow loss to Zach Lahn, a businessman propelled by the MAHA movement and Turning Point USA.
The picture was more mixed than simply declining. Sen. Lindsey Graham won his Senate primary outright without a runoff. In Alabama, Trump-backed Rep. Barry Moore defeated a former Navy SEAL in a Senate runoff. In Georgia, Rep. Mike Collins rode a weekend Trump endorsement to victory over former football coach Derek Dooley. Yet Georgia's gubernatorial runoff cut the other way — Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones lost to Rick Jackson, an outsider who spent at extraordinary levels and wrapped himself in Trump's own messaging, muddying any clean narrative about presidential influence.
As South Carolina voters prepared to go to the polls, Trump's decision to back both candidates read less like generosity than strategy — a quiet acknowledgment that even his endorsement, still formidable, is no longer a guarantee.
Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Friday with an unusual move: he announced his support for both candidates in South Carolina's Republican gubernatorial runoff, scheduled for Tuesday. The two contenders were Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson, and Trump's reasoning was straightforward, if unconventional. He said he couldn't afford to hurt one of them by endorsing only the other.
The decision revealed something about how Trump now operates in Republican primaries. He had already backed Evette weeks earlier, aligning himself with her and Gov. Henry McMaster, a longtime presidential ally. But as the race tightened and Wilson gained ground, Trump apparently decided that hedging his bets was the safer play. The move wasn't entirely new to him. He was simultaneously backing two candidates in Arizona's 1st Congressional District primary, and most memorably, he'd endorsed "ERIC" in Missouri's 2022 Senate race, where both major candidates shared the name and both claimed the endorsement as their own.
Evette had finished first in the initial primary, with Wilson placing second. The field had been crowded—it included Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, along with businessman Rom Reddy—but since no one secured a majority, the top two advanced to the runoff. Both Mace and Norman, after their eliminations, threw their support behind Wilson. So did Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texas conservative firebrand. The race had grown sharp and personal. In their final debate before Tuesday, both candidates hurled accusations of dishonesty and misrepresentation. Wilson leaned on his record as a combat veteran, prosecutor, and the state's chief law enforcement officer, arguing that Evette's role as lieutenant governor was largely ceremonial. Evette positioned herself as an outsider and businesswoman, painting Wilson as a career politician.
The South Carolina runoff had become a test of Trump's grip on Republican voters and the real weight of his endorsements. The state hadn't elected a Democrat to the governorship in 28 years, meaning whoever won the GOP runoff would be the overwhelming favorite in November against Democratic nominee Jermaine Johnson, a state representative. But Trump's endorsement power had shown cracks recently. Three weeks earlier, his last-minute backing of Iowa Rep. Randy Feenstra in the gubernatorial primary hadn't been enough. Feenstra lost narrowly to Zach Lahn, a businessman and farmer backed by the political machinery of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement and Turning Point USA.
Trump had rebounded somewhat since then. Evette had won the primary, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, another Trump endorsee, had secured a Senate primary majority without needing a runoff, fending off challenges from five candidates including conservative businessman Mark Lynch. In Georgia and Alabama just days before the South Carolina runoff, Trump-backed candidates had won two of three major races. Rep. Barry Moore, a House Freedom Caucus member and Trump supporter, had defeated former Navy SEAL sniper Jared Hudson in Alabama's Senate runoff. In Georgia's Senate runoff, Trump's weekend endorsement had helped propel Rep. Mike Collins, a MAGA champion, past former football coach Derek Dooley, who had the backing of Gov. Brian Kemp. Collins would face Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in a general election that could help determine whether Republicans held their Senate majority.
But Georgia's gubernatorial runoff had told a different story. Trump-backed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, despite also having Kemp's endorsement, had lost to Rick Jackson, who ran as an outsider and spent at what one Trump operative called "Tom Steyer level money" in a state a fraction of California's size. The operative, speaking anonymously, noted that Jackson had essentially embraced Trump in his messaging, making the race less a referendum on the president's influence and more a battle of resources and competing visions. As South Carolina voters prepared to head to the polls on Tuesday, Trump's dual endorsement strategy suggested he was taking no chances—a tacit acknowledgment that even his endorsement, powerful as it remained, was no longer a guarantee.
Notable Quotes
He couldn't hurt one of them by only endorsing the other— Trump, via Truth Social
Rick Jackson set a record for spending in a statewide Republican primary...That's going to have an impact— Anonymous Trump political operative, discussing Georgia gubernatorial race
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would Trump endorse both candidates in the same race? Doesn't that dilute the power of his endorsement?
It does seem counterintuitive, but Trump framed it as a way to avoid hurting either one. He'd already backed Evette, but Wilson was gaining ground. Rather than risk backing the wrong horse, he backed both.
Has he done this before?
Yes. He's doing it again in Arizona's 1st Congressional District, and most famously in Missouri's 2022 Senate race where he endorsed "ERIC" and both candidates with that name claimed it. It's a pattern when he's uncertain.
What does that say about his actual influence in these races?
It's mixed. He's won most of his endorsement battles recently, but not all. He lost in Iowa three weeks ago, and in Georgia's gubernatorial race just days before South Carolina. The operative I read quoted suggested that when candidates spend enough money or embrace Trump themselves, his endorsement becomes less decisive.
So the South Carolina runoff is really a test of whether his endorsement still matters?
Exactly. And by endorsing both, he's essentially hedging that test. If Evette wins, he can claim credit. If Wilson wins, he can do the same. It's a way of protecting his track record.
What's the actual difference between these two candidates?
Wilson is the establishment play—attorney general, combat veteran, prosecutor. Evette is the outsider businesswoman. In a Trump-influenced primary, you'd think the outsider would win, but Wilson has real credentials and institutional support. That's probably why Trump got nervous.