South Carolina § 2-19-80 - Nomination of qualified candidates to the General Assembly.

§ 2-19-80. Nomination of qualified candidates to the General Assembly.

(A) The commission shall make nominations to the General Assembly of candidates and their qualifications for election to the Supreme Court, court of appeals, circuit court, family court, and the Administrative Law Court. It shall review the qualifications of all applicants for a judicial office and select therefrom and submit to the General Assembly the names and qualifications of not more than six candidates whom it considers best qualified for the judicial office under consideration. If fewer than six persons apply to fill a vacancy or if the commission concludes there are fewer than six candidates qualified for a vacancy, it shall submit to the General Assembly only the names and qualifications of those who are considered to be qualified, with a written explanation for submitting fewer than six names.

(B) The nominations of the commission for any judgeship are binding on the General Assembly, and it shall not elect a person not nominated by the commission. Nothing shall prevent the General Assembly from rejecting all persons nominated. In this event, the commission shall submit another group of names and qualifications for that position. Further procedures in the manner required by this chapter must be made until the office is filled.

(C)(1) If the commission does not find the incumbent justice or judge qualified for the judicial office held and sought, his name shall not be submitted to the General Assembly for reelection and upon expiration of his then current term of office, he shall cease serving in that judicial position.

(2) If the commission finds an incumbent judge not qualified for the office sought, or if an incumbent judge dies, withdraws, or becomes otherwise disqualified for the office sought between the time he makes application for the office and the date of the election, the election for the office may not be held at that scheduled time, and the commission shall proceed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter to make other nominations for the office as though a new vacancy without an incumbent exists in that office, including reopening the application process with all required notices. Nothing prevents the commission from including in its new nominations the names and qualifications of persons other than the incumbent judge it included in its previous nominations.

(D) The commission shall accompany its nominations to the General Assembly with reports as to the qualifications of particular candidates and the particular reasons a candidate or candidates were not found qualified.

(E) A period of at least twenty-two days must elapse between the date of the commission's nominations to the General Assembly and the date the General Assembly conducts the election for these judgeships.

HISTORY: 1990 Act No. 610, Part IV, SECTION 7; 1996 Act No. 391, Part I, SECTION 1; 2001 Act No. 49, SECTION 1; 2024 Act No. 219 (S.1046), SECTION 1, eff July 1, 2025.

Effect of Amendment

2024 Act No. 219, SECTION 1, in (A), in the first sentence, substituted "Administrative Law Court" for "administrative law judge division", in the second sentence, substituted "not more than six" for "the three", and in the third sentence, substituted "six" for "three" in three places; in (B), in the fourth sentence, substituted "Further procedures" for "Further nominations"; made nonsubstanative changes in (C); in (D), deleted "or recommendations" following "with reports", and inserted "and the particular reasons a candidate or candidates were not found qualified" at the end; and in (E), substituted "twenty-two days" for "two weeks".