Richard Riley, the Democratic nominee, defeated Republican Edward Lunn Young and became the 111th governor of South Carolina.

The South Carolina Democratic Party held their primary for governor on June 13, featuring three high tier candidates.

Richard Riley, a former member of the General Assembly, emerged as the winner of the runoff election over Lieutenant Governor W. Brantley Harvey Jr. on June 27.

The race between Edward Lunn Young and Raymon Finch drew little interest compared to the Democratic primary and turnout for the Republican was less than that of 1974.

Turnout was higher than the previous gubernatorial election because of the increasingly competitive nature of the race between the two parties.