(GREENVILLE, S.C) — The South Carolina Republican Party voted unanimously on Saturday to hold their 2024 GOP presidential primary on February 24 next year, sources close to the process told ABC News.

The potential move would lengthen the time candidates have to focus on campaigning across the pivotal Palmetto State compared to the 2016 GOP election cycle.

The designation, if approved by the Republican National Committee, would upend the usual cadence of the Republican nominating calendar by placing South Carolina after Nevada for the first time in cycles. It would also make South Carolina Republicans vote 18 days after Nevada’s scheduled primary, putting the first-in-the-South presidential primary state front and center in the race for more than two full weeks.

In 2016, South Carolina’s Republican primary came three days before Nevada held its caucuses– when campaigns were pinballing between the two early states in an effort to sway each electorate.

A February 24 primary next year would give candidates far more time than in previous cycles to concentrate on winning South Carolina.

“This gives South Carolina the most exposure to candidates to come campaign in our state,” a source close to the process told ABC News.

The proposal earned applause from at least one presidential campaign: that of Ron DeSantis, whose team is bullish on the Florida governor’s chances in South Carolina.

“This could not have shaken out any better for us. We were happy to support this decision and look forward to competing to win in all four early states,” Andrew Romeo, a spokesman for the DeSantis campaign, told ABC News in a statement.

“Governor DeSantis has the strongest political operation and footprint of any of the announced candidates, including Biden,” he added.

Chris Murphy, a Republican member of the South Carolina House of Representatives who is involved in the DeSantis campaign’s operations in the state, told ABC News that the governor’s past military service and his wife’s ties to the state – she graduated from the College of Charleston and her parents live in Aiken – should attract South Carolina Republican voters.

“I think he’s going to win, just based on everything I’m seeing on the ground,” he said.

A spokesman for former President Donald Trump’s campaign did not comment directly on the South Carolina GOP vote when reached by ABC News but accused DeSantis of attempting to “claim any victory he can, even if it’s completely detached from reality.”

Representatives for multiple other presidential campaigns did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The proposed date would set South Carolina behind Nevada in the GOP nominating calendar for the first time since 2008, when South Carolina voted on Jan. 19, the same day Nevada held its caucus. In 2016, the Republican primary date was Feb. 20, which was three days ahead of Nevada’s caucus on Feb. 23. In 2012, South Carolina Republicans voted in the primaries on Jan. 21, two weeks before Nevada Republicans caucused.

The South Carolina GOP also voted on Saturday to approve participation thresholds for presidential candidates: a filing fee of $50,000 per candidate and a filing deadline of October 31, 2023, according to one source close to the process.

In South Carolina, primary dates are chosen by state party officials, which are then approved by the RNC. Every state has until October 1, 2023, to submit to the RNC their plans for electing or awarding delegates.

“Every state has until October 1st to let the RNC know what their plan is for electing, selecting, allocating, and binding delegates. We look forward to reviewing each state and territory’s plans,” Emma Vaughn, an RNC spokesperson, said of South Carolina’s Saturday vote.

The Democratic National Committee voted in February to make South Carolina the first state on their presidential primary calendar–on Feb. 3, 2024.

“This calendar reflects who we are as a nation,” DNC Party Chair Jamie Harrison said at the time.

In Nevada, the presidential primary for both parties is already scheduled by the Secretary of State’s office to be held on February 6. However, the Nevada Republican Party is suing the state to allow the party to hold a caucus – the method both major parties in Nevada have used for decades in presidential election years.

“We look forward to holding [a caucus] in Feb 2024,” Alida Benson, the Nevada Republican Party’s executive director, told ABC News.

If the party’s legal challenge is successful, Benson said a caucus would likely be held in early February 2024.

ABC News’ Gabriella Abdul-Hakim, Soo Rin Kim, Hannah Demissie and Abby Cruz contributed to this story.

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(WASHINGTON) — It remains to be seen whether the judge assigned to Donald Trump’s federal case, who was appointed by him three years ago, can act independently in light of her past rulings related to the former president, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”

Whitehouse, D-R.I., likened U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon to a “Trump advocate in a robe” but said she may correct herself going forward given that her biggest ruling to-date in Trump’s federal case was summarily rejected by an appellate panel.

“As we all know, her first intervention in the case was very badly smacked down by the 11th Circuit, a conservative circuit, that not only overruled her but schooled her. And as a new judge, I’m not sure how often you want to do that,” Whitehouse told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl.

He was referring to Cannon initially approving the appointment of a third party to review documents seized from Trump’s home during the federal investigation, which halted part of the case.

“We will find out whether she goes back to regular normal judging or continues to be a Trump advocate in a robe,” Whitehouse said.

“I suspect there’s a pretty good chance that she will just decide this is a good time in her career for her to act like a real judge and she’ll take the correction of the 11th Circuit and act accordingly,” he said.

Cannon was named to the federal bench by then-President Trump in 2020. She has been randomly selected to oversee Trump’s prosecution in federal court in Florida, where he is charged with illegally holding onto government secrets. He has pleaded not guilty.

Whitehouse said on “This Week” that “there’s going to be a lot of proceedings beforehand for special counsel Jack Smith to test [Cannon’s] behavior, to see how she’s conducting herself and have time to move for her recusal if she’s not providing proper rulings.”

Trump is the current front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, according to early polling, and has argued he is being unfairly targeted by law enforcement in the Biden administration’s Department of Justice — something Smith has pushed back on.

Whitehouse echoed that, saying there are “at least two firewalls” between President Joe Biden and the case: Biden doesn’t discuss criminal matters with Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Garland named Smith as an independent prosecutor to look into Trump.

Karl noted that Trump has made his charges “the centerpiece of his campaign” while Biden has largely avoided discussing it.

“I don’t think that works well for Trump, to tell you the truth,” Whitehouse said. “He goes into this sort of bullying, bombastic mode where he tries to make the other side as miserable as possible and hopes that they’ll go away or settle on good terms,” the senator continued. “When you’re dealing with a federal prosecutor, that stuff just doesn’t work. It doesn’t matter. It’s just background noise.”

Whitehouse defended Biden “steering well clear of” Trump’s case and his decision to slowly ramp up his 2024 campaign.

The president held his first campaign rally in Philadelphia on Saturday, 54 days after announcing his bid for reelection.

“He’s got a lot of time ahead of him, a lot of runway,” Whitehouse said, adding, “I don’t know that people are interested in a whole lot of campaign noise out of him, and I think he’s doing it right.”

Karl pointed to a comment from the senator last week regarding Biden’s age, when Whitehouse said, “I think everybody would certainly like a younger Joe Biden.” At 80, Biden is already the oldest-ever president. (Trump is 77.)

But in responding to concerns about his age — which voters have repeatedly worried about in polls — Biden can tout his experience, wisdom and record, Whitehouse said: “He can [address] that by continuing to talk about his successes.”

“He’s got a really good story to tell about the end of COVID, the reduction of inflation, the explosion in infrastructure jobs and manufacturing,” he said of Biden, “and I think that’s going to be a really solid baseline for him.”

Karl also asked about Whitehouse’s relationship with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has mounted a long shot bid to challenge Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination. Whitehouse and Kennedy attended law school together, with Kennedy supporting Whitehouse’s campaigns and even joining him on the trail.

When asked if the two are still in touch, Whitehouse said “not so much, particularly since this political episode has begun,” and he pledged his full support to Biden.

He said he disagrees with Kennedy’s criticisms of vaccines and America’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“I think Joe Biden has those issues and others right,” he said.

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(WASHINGTON) — Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Sunday that he expects 2024 presidential opponent Donald Trump may try to pardon himself in the event he is convicted of criminal charges but also reelected.

“I could certainly see Donald Trump doing that. That’s exactly what he would intend if he got elected president. And if [his case] was not brought to trial before then, he’s likely to issue that as well,” Hutchinson said in an interview with ABC “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl.

“From a legal standpoint, a constitutional standpoint, that is a question that the courts would have to resolve,” Hutchinson told Karl. “I’m doubtful of it. I don’t think that’s what the Constitution intends in giving the president the pardon power. But most importantly, it would be inappropriate, unseemly.”

The former president has been indicted in two cases and pleaded not guilty in each. He is charged by federal prosecutors for allegedly illegally withholding government secrets after leaving the White House and, separately, he is charged in New York City related to hush money paid to an adult film actress before the 2016 election.

A potential presidential pardon would only apply to the federal case.

Hutchinson has criticized others in the Republican primary field for promising to pardon Trump before his trial, saying the conversation alone undermines the American justice system. Hutchinson reiterated that view on “This Week,” citing conservatives who claim Trump is being targeted by law enforcement.

“In terms of the overall charge, ‘weaponization of the Justice Department’ — look at Donald Trump. He’s already declared that if he’s elected president, he’s going to appoint a special prosecutor to go after the Biden family. That’s called a weaponization of the Justice Department,” Hutchinson said. “And so let’s back off of these accusations.”

Former Pres. Trump’s defense team might try to push the trial back until after the election, Asa Hutchinson tells @JonKarl.

“But that really invokes the political timeframe into the judge setting the calendar. And that should not be a consideration.” https://t.co/re0py9LGb0 pic.twitter.com/klEAvUBupH

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) June 18, 2023

Hutchinson, a former federal prosecutor, said Trump’s looming prosecution will have a major political dimension as it unfolds during the 2024 election.

The timeline for Trump’s federal trial could stretch past Election Day, he noted, forcing voters to decide where they stand before Trump has been judged by a jury. (His New York trial is currently scheduled to begin in March 2024.)

“I would estimate a year [to get to trial] under the normal circumstances. But it all depends upon how much the judge is going to hold the counsel’s feet to the fire and say this is important in the public interest that this is handled in an appropriate way and not dragged out,” Hutchinson said.

Drawing earlier in the interview on his past experience as prosecutor, Hutchinson stressed the seriousness of the indictment to Karl while acknowledging Trump should have the chance to make his case in court.

Trump faces 37 federal charges, including 31 counts under the Espionage Act for how he allegedly handled national defense information.

“I’ve tried scores of federal criminal trials and taken them to a jury, and the cases don’t get any more serious than what’s been outlined by [prosecutor] Jack Smith because you’re talking about the allegations of not handling our nation’s top secrets in accordance with law. You’re talking about obstruction of justice,” Hutchinson said.

Still, he continued, “You’re going to hear another side whenever the defense presents their case.”

Trump told supporters in a speech earlier this month that he “did everything right” and “I had every right to have these documents,” an argument which has been disputed by outside legal experts.

Hutchinson has been one of few in the GOP field to take issue with the Republican National Committee requiring all candidates in their debates to take a pledge to support the eventual nominee, arguing he won’t agree to support a potential convicted felon.

The committee last week rejected his request to change the pledge, but Hutchinson told Karl that he still intends to make the debate stage starting in August. He is currently polling in the back of the pack of candidates.

He suggested on Sunday that Trump critics like him who sign the pledge will do so with a caveat in mind.

“You have to make the pledge based on the fact that Donald Trump is not going to be our nominee and you’re confident of it,” he said.

“It’s not a pleasant way to start off the debate,” he said. “The RNC — I have great respect for that institution — I’ve served on it. They’re trying to hold the party together. But we need to concentrate on supporting the principles of the party, which is the rule of law, support of law enforcement and law and order versus simply trying to circle the wagons around Donald Trump.”

He also reaffirmed his call for Trump to drop out of the race while acknowledging that “clearly he’s not going to.”

“It’s not fair to the country,” he said, “and certainly it’s not fair to the party that wants to get this country back on track.”

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(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden spoke before an audience of union members in Philadelphia Saturday in what was his first rally since he declared his bid for a second term and comes as his campaign engagements ramp up.

Biden begins his 2024 campaign in the same way he kicked off his run in 2020: in front of Pennsylvania laborers.

“I am a union man, period,” Biden said at a union hall in Pittsburgh during his first rally in 2019.

And just as he did then, Biden is accompanying the rally with a roll out of union endorsements. The AFL-CIO, a federation of 60 national and international labor groups — including the national teachers’ and government workers’ unions — endorsed Biden on the eve of the rally. The federation, which represents 12.5 million workers, is hosting the rally.

“The President and Vice President are humbled to have earned this historic groundswell of support nearly 17 months before the 2024 election,” Julia Chavez Rodriguez, Biden’s campaign manager, said in a statement.

Upon arriving in Philadelphia on Saturday, Biden received a helicopter tour of the collapsed portion of I-95 in Philadelphia and said “there’s no more important project right now in the country” than rebuilding the highway.

The president said he’s directed his team to “literally move heaven and earth” to get the rebuilding done as soon as possible and pledged federal assistance.

“The federal government got committed, we’re going to reimburse 100% this phase of the work, and well over the first 200 days, and then after that, 90% of the work,” the president said. “We’ll be here until the end. We won’t leave until it’s finished.”

Biden leaned on labor groups in his run for the White House in 2020, earning back some Rust Belt blue-collar support Democrats lost in 2016 — and these groups are prepared to use their vast political networks to turn out voters for the president once again.

Pennsylvania, the state Biden was born in, has not only played a significant role in the president’s political career, but also in national politics. Since 1920, candidates who won Pennsylvania were elected president 81% of the time, according to a FiveThirtyEight analysis.

“If I’m gonna be able to beat Donald Trump in 2020, it’s gonna happen here,” Biden said, launching his last campaign. Pennsylvania would later carry Biden across the finish line.

Biden’s reelection campaign’s activity has been slow since the president announced his decision nearly two months ago — though the announcement’s timing was on par with the reelection campaign announcements of former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush.

But in recent days, the campaign has kicked into another gear. The president attended a fundraiser in Connecticut on Friday, with receptions in Maryland and California scheduled later in the month, while first lady Jill Biden had a fundraising swing through New York and California earlier this week. Biden also addressed environmental groups Wednesday and accepted their endorsement.

The campaign trail is bound to be more demanding than last time. The COVID-19 pandemic allowed the Biden campaign to go virtual for much of 2020, with socially-distanced events in the final weeks of the race.

Biden, who would be 86 years old at the end of a second term, acknowledged in a February interview with ABC News’ David Muir that concerns about his age are “legitimate,” though he said it was not a consideration for him. Two months later, on the day after his reelection campaign launched, however, the president said his age was a factor in his decision-making.

“I respect them taking a hard look at it,” Biden said in April. “I’d take a hard look at it as well. I took a hard look at it before I decided to run.”

Biden instead wants voters to focus on the work he’s done, centering his campaign on what he sees as his accomplishments and behind a message that Americans should give him four more years to “finish the job.”

ABC News’ Amanda Maile contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are pushing back after former President Barack Obama criticized their stances on race relations.

The two South Carolina Republicans dinged Obama for his handling of race during his presidency, with Scott, the only Black candidate running for the Republican presidential nomination, arguing on “The Mark Levin Show” that Obama missed an opportunity to unite the country as America’s first Black president.

“Let us not forget we are a land of opportunity, not a land of oppression,” Scott tweeted Thursday night after the radio appearance. “Democrats deny our progress to protect their power. The Left wants you to believe faith in America is a fraud and progress in our nation is a myth.”

“The truth of MY life disproves the lies of the radical Left. We live in a country where little Black and Brown boys and girls can be President of the United States. The truth is – we’ve had one and the good news is – we will have another,” the tweet continued.

And Friday morning, Haley, who is of Indian descent, followed suit, tweeting, “[Obama] set minorities back by singling them out as victims instead of empowering them. In America, hard work & personal responsibility matter. My parents didn’t raise me to think that I would forever be a victim. They raised me to know that I was responsible for my success.”

Earlier Thursday, Obama defended people who are “skeptical” of Republican presidential candidates such as Scott and Haley when it comes to race, suggesting they turn a blind eye to past and present racial inequalities.

“If somebody is not proposing, both acknowledging and proposing elements that say, ‘No, we can’t just ignore all that and pretend as if everything’s equal and fair. We actually have to walk the walk and not just talk the talk.’ If they’re not doing that, then I think people are rightly skeptical,” he told Axelrod.

Obama said Republicans skate over racial inequities when they need to tackle the issue head on.

“I think there’s a long history of African-American or other minority candidates within the Republican Party who will validate America and say, ‘Everything’s great, and we can make it.’ Nikki Haley I think has a similar approach,” Obama said Thursday on “The Axe Files with David Axelrod.”

“I’m not being cynical about Tim Scott individually, but I am maybe suggesting the rhetoric of ‘Can’t we all get along?’ … that has to be undergirded with an honest accounting of our past and our present,” he continued, noting that he has yet to see “somebody in the Republican Party that is more serious about actually addressing some of the deep inequality that still exists in our society.”

Scott typically presents race relations in America with an optimistic tone, often telling of how his grandfather who picked cotton in the deep South lived to see his grandson “pick out a seat in Congress.”

After “The View” co-host Joy Behar suggested Scott doesn’t understand “the systemic racism that African Americans face in this country, and [faced by] other minorities,” Scott went on the show to push back.

“I believe America could do for anyone what she’s done for me: restoring hope, creating opportunities, and defending and protecting the America that we love, it’s such an important combination,” he said on “The View” earlier this month.

There isn’t much incentive for Black Republicans to adopt stronger stances on racial politics, according to Dr. Leah Wright Rigueur, author of “The Loneliness of the Black Republican: Pragmatic Politics and the Pursuit of Power.”

“The first thing to keep in mind is that for Black Republicans that have high ranking or highly visible positions, there’s no reward right now for them challenging whatever the standard narrative that is of the Republican Party,” she told ABC News. “In that respect, we know that the standard for the Republican Party right now is that there is no such thing as systemic racism.”

But Scott has made overtures to racial justice activists in the past. In the wake of George Floyd’s death, the senator went before Congress to give a passionate speech on his own racial experiences. He also pushed for police reform in his failed legislation, the Justice Act.

Still, Scott seems keenly aware of his place in the discourse, declining to join the Congressional Black Caucus in 2010.

“While I recognize the efforts of the CBC and appreciate their invitation for me to caucus with them, I will not be joining at this time. My campaign was never about race,” he said at the time.

More than 60% of Americans believe racism against Black people is widespread in the United States, according to a 2021 Gallup poll. However, about two-thirds of U.S. adults believe that when it comes to racism against Black people, racism by individual people is a bigger problem than racism in laws, a 2022 Pew Research poll says.

ABC News’ Abby Cruz contributed to this report.

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