Democrats finalize 2028 primary calendar, make South Carolina first state to ballot

The Democratic National Committee on Saturday finalized the party's schedule for the 2028 presidential primary season – selecting South Carolina as the first-in-the-nation state to vote.

The next five states to hold Democratic primaries will be Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Michigan and Virginia, the DNC also decided, in a meeting in Texas.

The schedule will give the party's Black and Latino voters and labor voters an opportunity to be among the first to decide who will be their Democrats' presidential nominee, according to NBC News.

The party decided, as it did in 2024, not to have Iowa, then New Hampshire be the first states to ballot. 

South Carolina’s primary will be Jan. 22, 2028, Nevada’s on Feb. 1, New Hampshire’s on Feb. 8, New Mexico’s on Feb. 15, Michigan’s on Feb. 22 and Virginia’s on Feb. 29, NBC News also reports.