Recounts Confirm Ousting of SC House Majority Leader, Narrow Win for Greenville County Republican
Democrat Joe Madge narrowly defeated House Majority Leader Micah Caskey in a recount-certified election result. Official results show Democrat Joe Madge, an engineer, won the 2026 election to represent District 89 in the state House. He defeated Caskey, an attorney, by 106 votes out of more than 14,400 ballots cast.
Caskey’s loss in a Lexington County district considered deep red was arguably the most surprising among the 10 state House Republicans ousted as part of a blue tsunami that swept the nation. Four years ago, Caskey barely survived a challenge from his right flank, winning a GOP primary by just 25 votes over an opponent who accused the former prosecutor of not being conservative enough. No Democrat challenged him that November. Then, in 2024, Caskey trounced his Democratic challenger by nearly 21 percentage points.
The final tally this week declared Madge the winner with 50.3% of the vote. Responding on social media, Caskey said he called Madge to congratulate him Wednesday. “The people have made their choice, and I respect it fully,” the 10-year incumbent wrote on X. “The seat has never belonged to me. It belongs to the people of Cayce, Springdale, and West Columbia, and it has been the honor of my life to hold it in trust for you.” The Marine veteran added, “I learned long ago in the Corps that service is not a title. It is a way of living, and it doesn’t end when the uniform comes off or when an election is over.” His loss means the House GOP Caucus will need to choose a new leader.
The caucus just elected him majority leader in August to replace Davey Hiott of Pickens, who didn’t seek re-election. Madge, who grew up in Washington, D.C., and a tiny Upstate New York town on Oneida Lake, moved to Lexington County in 1995. It’s been his home since, other than a three-year stint in Puebla, Mexico, with his job starting in 2003.
Madge said he decided to challenge Caskey, a 45-year-old Columbia-area native, because he was “tired of being angry” about what legislators were doing. “They just really weren’t focused on the things that would help people out in their daily lives, and instead of just being mad all the time, I said, ‘Well, let me see if I can run for office. Maybe I can help change things,'” he told the SC Daily Gazette.
Madge, chairman of the Lexington County Democratic Party from 2018 to 2022, said he figured a Democrat could get at least 45% of the vote in a blue wave midterm and went door-to-door in an effort to draw support from people who don’t normally vote. He said he’ll advocate for finding consensus on issues that should be nonpartisan priorities. “Now between Republicans and Democrats, we may have different approaches to those things, but that’s the appeal I want to try and make,” he said. “Can we focus on the things that the voters want to see us work on – reducing healthcare costs, improving our education system, fixing our roads and bridges?” he continued. “I think everybody wants to do those things. So that’s what I would like to see us focus on.”
Liberty and accountability
Recount-certified results demonstrate why narrow elections require reliable paper trails and consistent legal procedures. The appropriate standard is not whether the result pleases a party leader, but whether the count can be verified under rules established before Election Day. Libertarians also ask what the incoming representatives will do about public spending, licensing barriers, and constitutional freedoms. A new officeholder is accountable to all constituents, including voters who supported the losing candidate.