It all adds up to an unappealing vista for establishment Republicans. Further deepening the gloom, South Carolina has a strong record of backing the eventual winner of the GOP nomination. The Palmetto State has backed the winning bid in every Republican contest from 1980 to 2008. In 2012, Newt Gingrich won the primary but was defeated by Mitt Romney in the battle to reach the general election.
“I think it’s a game-changer, I really do,” said David Woodard, a professor of political science at Clemson University who is also a GOP consultant in the state. “Let’s just say Cruz wins: I think that’s a big thing. He will have won a Southern state, a base-state for Republicans that is not going blue. That could really help him.”
But Woodard also offered a note of caution regarding attempts to predict the outcome in his home state.
“I think I can make a good case for any one of about five people winning the primary,” he said with a laugh.
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