South Carolina Democrats elected Christale Spain, the former executive director of the state Democratic Party, as state party chair at their convention Saturday. She ran with the backing of the party’s top brass, including Rep. Jim Clyburn, and will be the first Black woman to lead the state party.

A longtime organizer in Palmetto State politics, Spain was widely considered the front-runner in the race, a usually sleepy contest that saw more candidates run than it has in more than 25 years. Her biggest competitor, Brandon Upson, the state Black caucus chair, painted her as an establishment candidate whose connections to the old guard would stymie the party’s progress in an all-important election year.

Democrats who supported Upson were seeking to overhaul a state party they felt had long been dominated by Clyburn — who helped President Joe Biden win the state primary in 2020 — before South Carolina’s debut as the party’s first presidential primary state in 2024 and in the wake of a down cycle in the 2022 midterm elections.

Still, it was Spain’s connections, paired with her campaign strategy — characterized by social media blasts and regular visits to county party meetings and cattle calls — that delivered her the victory. She won with the support of nearly 700 of the party’s roughly 1,000 state delegates in a standing vote.