# Political nobody wins SC Democratic US Senate nomination in strangest political upset of the year. **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [June 9, 2010, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518 "2010-06-09T07:48:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/241 "2010-08-14T19:22:18Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Is this the basis the SC Dem Party needed to cut this poor whackjob loose in favor of the _real_ nominee, the guy who could beat DeMint? And to investigate the vote counting system, while they’re at it? I understand the Democratic Party has again asked him to withdraw, but he’s refused, again. Besides, we’d need a real knight in shining armor to beat Demint and I don’t think we have one. Rawl lost to Greene, remember. Plus we’d need Demint’s financial investigations to show his “discounted” C Street rent payments to the Family and I don’t think that’ll happen before November. And even if it showed Demint’s a completely dishonest fraudulent megalomaniac, South Carolinians would still vote for him. State motto: But We’ve Always Done It This Way. Demint’s raised over $3 million to beat two opponents who between them reportedly have raised about $1,000. We can always hope for our knight and the investigation, but our brilliant Democrats put Greene in the nominee’s seat in the first place. I weep for South Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2010, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/242 "2010-08-14T19:44:23Z")
> [@legalsnugs](#): > > Rawl lost to Greene, remember. There’s some reason for skepticism about that, given SC’s use of the most hackable voting technology one could conceive - and an already-known issue with ES&S machines recording votes for the wrong candidate. Unfortunately (or by intent), that system is also unverifiable. > [@](#): > > And even if it showed Demint’s a completely dishonest fraudulent megalomaniac, South Carolinians would still vote for him. But that’s probably true anyway. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/243 "2010-08-14T20:31:07Z")
> [@legalsnugs](#): > > > [@gonzomax](#): > > > > He was a last minute candidate who plopped down 10,400 bucks he should not have had. He was a complete unknown, non politician. Then he won the election. How could the Dems have forseen such a development or had plans for it ? > > He filed in March, the primary was in June. You’d think in 3 months \*someone \*could have run a background check on the guy. His opponent could have said something, anything, about him, or at least found out what his campaign planks were. But the point is, a majority of the SC democrats voted for him, so he’s the Democratic candidate for the US Senate. And maybe, just to make a nice change, the SCDP should take him seriously. This is no joke. This is 50% of our senate seats. Obviously he was not vetted. that proves he was not taken seriously. They did not do their jobs. ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/244 "2010-08-15T07:41:18Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > > [@legalsnugs](#): > > > > He filed in March, the primary was in June. You’d think in 3 months \*someone \*could have run a background check on the guy. His opponent could have said something, anything, about him, or at least found out what his campaign planks were. But the point is, a majority of the SC democrats voted for him, so he’s the Democratic candidate for the US Senate. And maybe, just to make a nice change, the SCDP should take him seriously. This is no joke. This is 50% of our senate seats. > > Obviously he was not vetted. that proves he was not taken seriously. They did not do their jobs. Obviously. But if you were running for a major federal office, would you not check into your competition? A little bit? To just see if there WAS any competition there? I agree - no one did their jobs here, including South Carolina voters. I hope they all learned something because we’re all going to be stuck with Jim “Waterloo” Demint for another six freaking years. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/245 "2010-08-15T14:52:45Z")
They checked, found that he had no campaign presence whatsoever, and concluded that there was no competition there. ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/246 "2010-08-15T15:19:31Z")
S.C. is going to vote for DeMint regardless of his opponent. This is the state that continued to send Strom Thurmond to D.C. years after he was verifiably senile. (I clerked for Hollings one summer when Hollings and Thurmond were still the senators from S.C., and the stories he told us of Thurmond’s senility were hilarious and horrifying at the same time). ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/247 "2010-08-15T18:03:32Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > They checked, found that he had no campaign presence whatsoever, and concluded that there was no competition there. So you’re saying that Greene\* was \*vetted? So who screwed up here, because he WON the competition! I wonder what Demint is going to do with his $3 million war chest. He can take a page from the Greene playbook here. He doesn’t have to say a single word or spend a single dollar, and he’ll still win the election. My pipe dream is that Sheheen, the Democrat, will win the governorship and Demint will be convicted of a felony. Any felony will do. Then Sheheen will name a Democrat as senator! Yes, it’s a quite a stretch that it might occur within six years, considering how slowly investigations, charges, trials, etc., move, but it’s still my dream, and it might be the only way to get a Democratic senator in South Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2010, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/248 "2010-08-15T18:44:37Z")
> [@](#): > > So you’re saying that Greene was vetted? So who screwed up here, because he WON the competition! My best guess is that Vic Rawl just managed to piss off a lot of the electorate somehow. Certainly, it doesn’t reflect well on him that he was able to lose to someone who wasn’t running. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/249 "2010-08-16T16:27:33Z")
A headline on [wistv.com](http://wistv.com) today - “Alvin Greene Howls and Wails At Reporter”. Good times! ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2010, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/250 "2010-08-16T17:31:18Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > A headline on [wistv.com](http://wistv.com) today - “Alvin Greene Howls and Wails At Reporter”. Good times! I hope everyone who voted for him is appropriately ashamed. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2010, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/251 "2010-09-06T02:22:49Z")
> [@legalsnugs](#): > > So you’re saying that Greene\* was \*vetted? So who screwed up here, because he WON the competition! That would be “The Voters.” ---
**Author:** ![legalsnugs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@legalsnugs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/legalsnugs)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2010, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/252 "2010-09-06T12:19:16Z")
> [@lawoot](#): > > > [@legalsnugs](#): > > > > So you’re saying that Greene\* was \*vetted? So who screwed up here, because he WON the competition! > > That would be “The Voters.” Well, duh. Did you miss my last post? If nothing else, I hope his nomination was a wake up call to the electorate as well as to the Party PTB. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2010, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/253 "2010-09-06T12:46:10Z")
I misread the title as \*\*_Politically nobody wins SC Democratic US Senate nomination_… after reading the thread and seeing the guy howling, I think my version of the title is accurate. ---
**Author:** ![Claverhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Claverhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claverhouse)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2010, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/254 "2010-09-07T15:52:42Z")
Interesting that any poor or average person seeking office has his filing fee reviewed by state officials/police; but not anyone from the political classes… _‘Mr. Kennedy, where did you find the cash to file for office ?’ ‘My daddy gave it me !’_ ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/255 "2010-09-07T17:49:07Z")
No, that’s not really interesting at all. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/256 "2010-09-08T04:36:24Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > No, that’s not really interesting at all. Agreed. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2010, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/257 "2010-09-18T02:27:55Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > If he legitimately won, he won by some weird conjunction of the actual candidate being unliked _and_ the voters not caring enough otherwise to even try. That means he isn’t the South Carolina Democrats’ pick, he’s the “default” we don’t want _that guy_. Well, it’s not exactly the first seat contested on that basis. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/258 "2010-10-25T13:29:23Z")
So what’s this Greene fellow been up to as the election draws near? ---
**Author:** ![Ichbin\_Dubist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/51bf81/32.png) [@Ichbin\_Dubist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichbin_Dubist)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/259 "2010-10-25T14:22:13Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > So what’s this Greene fellow been up to as the election draws near? I don’t live in SC so I don’t know what 's he up to, but I do know what he’s down to: less than 30% of the voters will vote for him by 538’s [model](http://elections.nytimes.com/2010/forecasts/senate/south-carolina) (this is a link to [nytimes.com](http://nytimes.com)). They give him 0% chance of victory. I think 30% is often bandied about as the percentage that will vote for Voldemort if he was nominated by the party they support, which this would seem to support. (Christine O’Donnell’s number on the same blog is currently 40% but is falling faster, and she’s also at 0% chance of winning.) ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518/260 "2010-10-25T16:24:54Z")
> **[Further Proof That Alvin Greene Is The Best](https://funnyordie.com/2010/08/17/20456/further-proof-that-alvin-greene-is-the-best/)** > > Senate hopeful Alvin Greene is interviewed by a local news reporter. Screaming of “no!!!” and “go!!!” ensues. Reminder: this is a real Senate candidate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-nobody-wins-sc-democratic-us-senate-nomination-in-strangest-political-upset-of-the-year/542518.md?page=14)