Prayer service, open house all part of McMaster inauguration

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster plans a prayer service, open house and an inaugural ball when he is sworn into office next month for a second full term.

Inauguration day on Jan. 11 will start with a prayer service at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Columbia, where McMaster regularly attends.

McMaster, who was the first Columbia native to serve as governor in a century, held the prayer service for his first inaugural at the same church, instead of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral where the event had been held in previous inaugurations.

McMaster and other statewide officers will be sworn in during a ceremony on the south steps of the Statehouse starting at 11 a.m.

After that, McMaster and his wife, Peggy, will head back to the Governor's Mansion and hold an open house from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The the governor, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and other statewide officials will hold the inaugural ball at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. A ticket is required for that event and can be bought at 2023SCInaugural.sc.gov or email 2023SCInaugural@gmail.com.

McMaster, 75, won reelection in November with 58% of the vote. If he completes his second term, he would serve as governor for 10 years, longer than any other executive in the state’s history, since he took office in 2017 for the final two years of Gov. Nikki Haley’s term.