South Carolina Adjutant General


The Adjutant General of South Carolina is head of the Military Department for that state, overseeing the South Carolina Army National Guard, the South Carolina Air National Guard, and the South Carolina State Guard. The Adjutant General is the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the state, but is subordinate to the Governor.
The office was the only adjutant general in the nation that was an elected position. Adjutants General were elected for four-year terms at the same times as the Governor and other officials. This changed after the 2014 elections because South Carolina voters approved Amendment 2 in the 2014 general election, that will be the last time that the adjutant general is popularly elected. That was the final time that a state adjutant general will stand for election in the United States, barring future state constitutional changes.
A famous former Adjutant General is James C. Dozier, who held the post from 1926 to 1959.
The Current AG is Major General Van McCarty. He was appointed to the position on January 17, 2019 by Governor Henry McMaster following the retirement of Major General Robert Livingston. MG McCarty had previously served as Assistant Adjutant General, Army.