Next SC governor may be asked to stop an execution. How would hopefuls decide?
Shortly before a three-member firing squad shoot Stephen Bryant on Friday evening inside the South Carolina Department of Corrections’ death chamber at its Broad River Road complex, a phone call will begin between the prison officials, the attorney general and the governor.
Presuming no appeals are pending that could delay Bryant’s execution, a prison official will ask Gov. Henry McMaster if he wants to grant clemency and commute Bryant’s sentence to life in prison.
It’s a question McMaster has said ‘No’ to six times since September 2024, when South Carolina resumed executions after a 13-year pause.
After that response, those on the phone call listen to the execution proceedings, including the final statement, updates from the death chamber and the gun shots when the condemned chose the firing squad.
McMaster’s choices not to grant clemency have been the most profound decisions he’s made during his time in office as governor, he told reporters recently.
“There are a lot of decisions that don’t involve life or death. They may involve welfare, including education and economic development and preservation of natural resources, all those things. But this is a life or death question,” McMaster said.
Besides Bryant, 23 people are on South Carolina’s death penalty list.
How many of those prisoners will be executed before the end of McMaster’s term, and how many could see a death warrant issued during the next governor’s term is unknown as many factors play a role in a condemned person running out of appeals.
Even though each of the announced candidates for governor support the death penalty to some degree, they all bring different mindsets leading up to that moment when they’re asked whether they would grant a reprieve to someone sentenced to die.
Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette
Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette is Catholic, a church that advocates against the death penalty.
However, Evette, a Republican, supports executions, putting her at odds with the church.
“I’m very faithful. I’ve been a woman of faith my whole life,” Evette said. “But I also believe in an eye for an eye, and I believe justice has to be delivered.”
Evette pointed to how anyone sentenced to death went through the judicial process, which includes a trial with a jury of his or her peers and the right to appeal.
“I think you take into account the victim’s family, and sometimes I think when we these things are talked about, we don’t talk about the victim’s families enough,” Evette said.
“It’s probably something I conflict with my faith, but I agree with the governor that our system, although it can have its flaws, it is the best system in the world,” Evette added. “And if you are charged, and you are convicted (by) a jury of your peers, and no new earth-shattering evidence has been brought to light, then justice is served.”
Evette also pointed to instances when people have carried out smash and grabs at stores and the death of Iryna Zarutska while on a Charlotte light-rail trail to emphasize the need to be tough on crime.
“I think the reason our country is in the state it’s in with such lawlessness in some areas is because there have been no consequences, right?” Evette said. “We need prosecutors that are going to prosecute and not plead things down, and we need judges who are going to sentence accordingly.”
State Rep. Jermaine Johnson
State Rep. Jermaine Johnson, D-Richland, said he believes in the death penalty for extreme cases, pointing to Dylann Roof, who was convicted of murdering nine Black churchgoers in Charleston at a bible study in 2015. Johnson added he believes the state needs to pass a hate crimes law.
“We need to make sure that we’re protecting all of the citizens. We know that it has not always been correct in applying the death penalty to certain people in certain communities. So everything will be a case-by-case scenario, but in extreme cases, absolutely I believe in it,” Johnson said.
But ahead of an execution, Johnson said he would look at all aspects of a case before making a decision.
“It’d be the crime that was committed, the evidence that was involved, hearing all sides of the case from all the attorneys, the prosecutors, the families, the victims, hearing about all that information has to be accounted for before making a decision such as this,” Johnson said.
State Sen. Josh Kimbrell
State Sen. Josh Kimbrell, R-Spartanburg, said his view on the death penalty is different than most Republicans.
“I’m totally pro-law enforcement, but I know that law enforcement, like anything else, is fallible,” Kimbrell said. “Once you execute somebody, there’s no going back. I have become more uncomfortable with the death penalty than I’ve ever been. So I’m not saying there’s no circumstance where I would apply it. I’m not totally saying I want to abolish it, but I am probably the most squeamish of the candidates about it.”
In cases such as terrorism or mass murder, Kimbrell would be inclined to allow an execution to take place, he said.
Kimbrell said he would look at the political considerations of why a death penalty was sought, the socio-economic factors, racial demographics. Kimbrell added he would talk to the trial judge, jurors on the case, the prosecutor, defense attorney and even the inmate if they wanted to speak.
For Kimbrell, however, the unevenness of how the death penalty is levied also bothers him. Poor defendants are more likely to receive the death penalty than wealthier defendants. He pointed to Alex Murdaugh being sentenced to life in prison for murdering his wife and son.
Kimbrell publicly criticized the execution of Richard Moore, who was given the death penalty for murdering James Mahoney in a convenience store in 1999. Kimbrell said he would have commuted Moore’s sentence because Moore did not bring a gun to the robbery.
“What Richard Moore did was far less heinous than what, in my opinion, Susan Smith did or Alex Murdaugh did, but they had enough money to fight it. They could avoid death row,” Kimbrell said. “In our state, is not equal justice under the law. If you’re poor and you’re convicted of the capital crime, you’re going to go to death row. And if you’re rich, chances are you’re not.”
“You can definitively say on the record that under a Kimbrell administration, you’d probably see the first commutation in South Carolina history,” Kimbrell added.
U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace
U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, a Republican who represents the 1st Congressional District in the Lowcountry, has been critical of the attorney general’s office and of prosecutors during the campaign. She pointed to how the people who are accused of murdering Logan Federico in Columbia and Zarutska in Charlotte had long criminal histories.
“When I see cases like Logan Federico or Iryna in Charlotte, (and) I see nine black church members at Mother Emanuel, I want the murderers of those crimes to be put to death, and, quite frankly, I’d like to pull the trigger,” Mace said. “So there is a time and a place for the death penalty, and I will use it as governor.”
Before an execution, Mace said would speak to all parties in the case including the families of victims and the defendant.
“When it’s something that is very important, I talk to everybody involved, and then I make a decision based on what I learned from those meetings and information and data, etc.,” Mace said. “So, I would talk to anyone involved, from the prosecution to the defense, to the attorney general, all parties involved, to get a sense and a clear picture of what’s happened or transpired.”
Mace acknowledged considering whether to allow an execution to take place may be one of the hardest decision to face a governor.
“Absolutely, particularly if it’s a controversial case, or there’s any credible doubt, you have to have that investigated, like period. So it is heavy. But when I look at there’s some very cut and dry cases. Dylann Roof, Logan Federico’s killer. They’re very cut and dry cases,” Mace said.
Mullins McLeod
Mullins McLeod, a Charleston attorney running for the Democratic nomination for governor, said he would do a thorough review of a case file ahead of an execution.
“I would love to tell you that our criminal justice system is perfect, but it is not,” McLeod said. “It is, in fact, imperfect, and so it’s important to examine basically the entire file to determine whether or not commuting the sentence to a life sentence is, in fact, the appropriate thing to do, given the circumstances in each case should be examined independently on its own merits.”
McLeod said he could envision speaking to the family members of victims and the inmate’s attorney when considering a clemency request.
“The idea of the death penalty doesn’t give me the warm and the fuzzies, but I recognize it’s the law of the land, and that’s why as governor I would support death penalty,” McLeod said. “Having said that any requests for clemency, if I’m Governor, will be given due and proper consideration.
U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman
U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, a Republican who represents South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District, which is outside of Charlotte, also pointed to the deaths of Zarutska and Federico, where the people accused of their killings are repeat offenders.
“Recently, we’ve had a rash of deaths by criminals who should have been incarcerated years before they committed crime after crime,” Norman said. “They were arrested time after time, and you look at everything, but I’m a firm believer in the death penalty. I’m a firm believer that if a serious crime is committed, the courts determine that is beyond a reasonable doubt, the man is guilty, I would have no problem going through (with) the death penalty.”
Norman acknowledged each case is different and said he would want to listen to different opinions.
“I’ve always taken the time to listen to those who want to speak to me. And while I may not be able to as governor, to speak with everyone, I would have an open door. I would have two open ears and glad to hear what the concerns were. But at the end of the day I would make the final call when it comes to the execution and moving forward with the death penalty,” Norman said.
“I’m sure it’s heartbreaking. When you see something like that, regardless of the person that’s receiving it, regardless of the reasons of what he did, I mean, it would be to see a person die in front of you. I’m sure that’s moving,” Norman said.
Attorney General Alan Wilson
Attorney General Alan Wilson has had direct experiences with the executions. The Republican, who’s in his fourth term as attorney general, has been on the phone calls seven times to tell the prison a prisoner has no pending appeals.
“My job is to follow the law, perform my duties for my staff, making sure that my staff performs their duties. And if we’ve done everything we’re supposed to do under the law and met our obligations, then I sleep at night when the sentence is carried out,” Wilson said.
Wilson said any decision on clemency if he were governor would be taken on a case-by-case basis.
“It should be looked on the individual case, the facts of the case, the merits of the case, the aggravating factors that were considered by the front line prosecutors,” Wilson said. “I am a strong proponent of the death penalty, and there would have to be something severe and egregious, and a breakdown in the justice system that would cause me to rethink whether or not a death sentence should be carried out.”
He said he would want to speak to the victims or their family members, the law enforcement involved in the case, the prosecutors as he weighed the decision.
“The hardest decision a governor can make is to carry out an execution on a condemned defendant, and it is a decision that I would not take lightly,” Wilson said.
Gov. Henry McMaster’s view
For McMaster, he would want whoever is the next governor to read as much of the records from a case and understand that a jury already has made two key decisions, whether someone is guilty and whether to impose the death sentence.
“It’s a very important decision, it must be taken very seriously. And that’s what I try to do and I think that’s what anyone with this kind of authority should do,” McMaster said. “But again, this case, this is the end. It’s been a long way getting here, and the people that know the most about the case, are those that were even involved in the acts in resulted in the death, as well as those jurors and the judge in the courtroom, and the lawyers and courts, and sometimes victims or victims families.”
This story was originally published November 13, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Next SC governor may be asked to stop an execution. How would hopefuls decide?."
