| Election Name: | 1938 South Carolina Democratic gubernatorial primary runoff |
| Country: | South Carolina |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1934 South Carolina gubernatorial election |
| Previous Year: | 1934 |
| Next Election: | 1942 South Carolina gubernatorial election |
| Next Year: | 1942 |
| Election Date: | September 13, 1938 |
| Image1: | File:Burnet R. Maybank.jpg |
| Nominee1: | Burnet R. Maybank |
| Party1: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 163,947 |
| Percentage1: | 52.3% |
| Nominee2: | Wyndham Manning |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 149,368 |
| Percentage2: | 47.7% |
| Governor | |
| Before Election: | Olin D. Johnston |
| Before Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Burnet R. Maybank |
| After Party: | Democratic Party (United States) |
The 1938 South Carolina gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1938 to select the governor of the state of South Carolina. Burnet Rhett Maybank, Mayor of Charleston, South Carolina, won the contested Democratic primary and defeated Republican Joseph Augustis Tolbert in the general election becoming the 99th governor of South Carolina.
The South Carolina Democratic Party held their primary for governor on August 30 and it is noted as being the last attempt by former Governor Cole Blease at becoming governor again. Maybank, the mayor of Charleston, had the support of the Lowcountry and emerged victorious from the runoff on September 13 against Wyndham Manning because the Upstate failed to coalesce around his candidacy.
| Democratic Primary | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| Burnet Rhett Maybank | 117,900 | 35.1 |
| 74,356 | 22.1 | |
| 60,823 | 18.1 | |
| Neville Bennett | 47,882 | 14.2 |
| Ben E. Adams | 26,376 | 7.9 |
| Francis M. Easterling | 6,877 | 2.0 |
| D.T. Blackmon | 951 | 0.3 |
| John Hughes Cooper | 922 | 0.3 |
| Democratic Primary Runoff | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Burnet Rhett Maybank | 163,947 | 52.3 | +17.2 |
| Wyndham Meredith Manning | 149,368 | 47.7 | +25.6 |
The general election was held on November 8, 1938 and Burnet Rhett Maybank was elected the next governor of South Carolina against token Republican candidate Joseph Augustis Tolbert. Being a non-presidential election and few contested races, turnout was much lower than the Democratic primary election. The presence of even a token opposition candidate was unusual for South Carolina at the time.
|-| | colspan=5 |Democratic hold|-