{"id":2597145,"date":"2026-04-30T12:40:02","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T16:40:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mark-sanford-suspends-congressional-campaign-after-30-days\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T12:42:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T16:42:01","slug":"mark-sanford-suspends-congressional-campaign-after-30-days","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mark-sanford-suspends-congressional-campaign-after-30-days\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Sanford suspends congressional campaign after 30 days"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmark-sanford-suspends-congressional-campaign-after-30-days%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2597145&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Mark Sanford, the former U.S. representative and former governor of South Carolina,announced that he is suspending his bid to reclaim South Carolina\u2019s 1st Congressional District just 30 days after launching his campaign. The decision comes as he shifts his focus away from Congress, saying he plans to begin a nonprofit aimed at combating national debt, likely centered in South Carolina.  <\/p>\n<p>Sanford\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >political career includes service<\/a> in both Congress and as governor, along with a scandal in 2009 involving a trip he claimed was a hike on the Appalachian Trail while he was actually visiting his mistress in Argentina. He previously returned to Congress in 2013, won again afterward, and later lost in the 2018 GOP primary largely amid dissatisfaction tied to Donald Trump. Sanford also said he intends to use about $1.3 million remaining in his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-ny-dem-accused-of-committing-campaign-finance-violations-prior-to-special-election\/\" title=\"EXCLUSIVE: NY Dem Accused Of Committing ... Finance Violations Prior To Special Election\">federal campaign account<\/a> to support the nonprofit, while not ruling out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-supreme-court-to-decide-on-whether-to-keep-trump-on-ballot\/\" title=\"US Supreme Court to Decide ...&#039;s Ballot Eligibility\">future public office<\/a> entirely.  <\/p>\n<p>In South Carolina\u2019s GOP primary on June 9,multiple candidates are competing to succeed Nancy Mace,who is running for governor; the district is considered solidly Republican.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p>Former Rep. and South Carolina Gov. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/mark-sanford\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"4161\">Mark Sanford<\/a> announced Thursday that he is suspending his campaign to regain his low-country district just 30 days after launching. <\/p>\n<p>Sanford, 65,\u00a0became known as a staunch critic of President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"4\">Donald Trump<\/a> during his first administration, often targeting the president for <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/federal-spending\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"3682\">federal spending<\/a>. <\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4549217\/janet-mills-drops-out-maine-senate-race-clearing-way-platner\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Janet Mills drops out of Maine Senate race, clearing way for Platner<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4545934\/desantis-deja-vu-florida-governor-script-failed-2024-campaign\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>DeSantis deja vu: Florida governor follows familiar script from failed 2024 campaign<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4544138\/nrcc-debuts-new-maga-majority-candidates-2026-midterms\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>NRCC rolls out new MAGA majority candidates ahead of 2026 midterms<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4040585\/where-house-senate-retirements-stand-2026\/\"><strong>HERE\u2019S WHERE HOUSE AND SENATE RETIREMENTS STAND IN 2026<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Instead of seeking to take back <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/south-carolina\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"524\">South Carolina\u2019s<\/a> 1st Congressional District, Sanford said he plans to start a nonprofit group focused on combating national debt. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat I hope to do is to indeed build a grassroots organization \u2014 start small, but I have a fair size circle of friends and folks with whom I have some degree of influence and contacts,\u201d he <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/mark-sanford-south-carolina-congress-campaign-debt-6bfdc19b8d731b31f3077f1a8a975ab2\">told the <em>Associated Press<\/em><\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>The Palmetto State Republican filed to run for office on the last day of candidate filing, joining a wide field of candidates from both parties vying to succeed Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/nancy-mace\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"2548\">Nancy Mace<\/a> (R-SC), who is running for governor.<\/p>\n<p>While other candidates spent months laying the groundwork for their congressional runs, Sanford was marching into familiar territory. In his first run for Congress in 1994, he entered a similarly crowded primary field and finished second before securing a win in the runoff. <\/p>\n<p>Sanford served for six years before following a similar path to the governor\u2019s office, where he served two terms. <\/p>\n<p>However, his tenure was stained by the Appalachian Trail, which is where he claimed to be hiking in 2009, when in reality he was visiting his mistress in Argentina. Calls for his impeachment erupted, but Sanford was able to fend off the move by resigning on his own terms.<\/p>\n<p>Sanford returned to Congress in 2013 after winning his seat back in a special election and went on to win two more full terms before losing in the 2018 GOP primary. <\/p>\n<p>His 2018 loss was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fmr-capitol-police-chief-sends-letter-explaining-how-intel-community-failed-to-respond-to-jan-6-protests\/\" title=\"Fmr. Capitol Police chief sends letter explaining how Intel Community failed to respond to Jan. 6 protests\">largely due<\/a> to the ire of Trump, who backed Sanford\u2019s challenger after he claimed the congressman was \u201cvery unhelpful.\u201d Sanford later made a long-shot bid in 2020 against Trump in the presidential primary but eventually dropped out of the race. <\/p>\n<p>Sanford said he plans to use the $1.3 million left in his federal account toward his planned nonprofit organization, which will be focused in South Carolina. <\/p>\n<p>But he didn\u2019t guarantee he\u2019s done with public offices forever. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cLook, if there\u2019s ever a guy who would say, \u2018Never say never,\u2019 it\u2019s me,\u201d Sanford said. \u201cBut I think, realistically, yeah, and it\u2019s recognition of that being the case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/4549082\/louisiana-governor-suspend-primary-election\/\"><strong>LOUISIANA SUSPENDS PRIMARY ELECTIONS AFTER SUPREME COURT STRIKES DOWN CONGRESSIONAL MAP<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The GOP primary in South Carolina is June 9, and both parties have a field of candidates vying for a spot on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/company-leading-arizona-recount-asks-court-that-procedures-be-kept-secret\/\" title=\"Company Leading Arizona Recount Asks Court That Procedures Be Kept Secret\">general election ballot<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>The coastal district is rated solid Republican by Cook Political Report, and Rep. Mark Smith, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Alex Pelbath, and physician Sam McCown are leading in the GOP field. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former Rep. Mark Sanford suspends bid to recapture SC seat<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4130,"featured_media":2597146,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/5f00921450098e1c337d2a07563fabd8-scaled-e1777565653940.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[78873,76818,41960,53182],"class_list":["post-2597145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-congressional-campaign","tag-mark-sanford","tag-south-carolina","tag-suspension-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/5f00921450098e1c337d2a07563fabd8-scaled-e1777565653940.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2597145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4130"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2597145"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2597145\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2597149,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2597145\/revisions\/2597149"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2597146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2597145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2597145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2597145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}