Ervin, a Greenville attorney and radio station owner, said he made his decision just hours before the two candidates met to announce the endorsement. Ervin said he decided Gov. Nikki Haley must be replaced for the good of the state, and while he was a long shot at best to beat her, Sheheen still has a chance.
"As a Republican, I have to put my state first. It was a difficult decision to me, because I was in it to win it," Ervin said at a Greenville park.
Ervin's decision finishes another chapter in South Carolina's strange politics.The former judge loaned his campaign $3.4 million and as of last week, had spent all but $1.2 million. He campaigned Monday and his commercials were still on TV as arrangements were made for Tuesday's announcement. Now he said he will hit the trail with Sheheen and use his remaining campaign money to pay off his bills.
Ervin contacted Sheheen through a mutual friend after making his decision Tuesday morning. The stunned Democrat agreed to meet shortly before a news conference on the banks of the Reedy River where Sheheen was already scheduled to talk about the hacking incident at the state Revenue Department two years ago.
Twenty minutes later, Ervin was raising Sheheen's hand in front of cameras, saying: "Make this man our next governor. We need new leadership. We need honestly and integrity."
Throughout the campaign, Haley has lumped Sheheen and Ervin together, saying she was happy to run against two trial lawyers.
"Tom Ervin, Vince Sheheen, and their liberal trial lawyer cronies have always had the same agenda in this campaign," said Haley spokesman Rob Godfrey. "It's no surprise that two pro-Obamacare trial lawyers would officially tie the knot at the end of the race."
It is the second time this year Ervin has ended a campaign before the finish. He entered the gubernatorial race as Haley's primary challenger. But he withdrew days after filing to run, saying he needed more time to introduce himself to voters. In July, he secured a spot on the November ballot after collecting twice the required 10,000 signatures.
The latest Winthrop Poll shows Haley 10 points ahead of Sheheen among likely voters, with 44 percent. Ervin had just 4 percent. The poll, conducted Sept. 21-28, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. Ervin contends his support was stronger than that, and has grown since, but not enough to beat Haley.
In 2010, Haley beat Sheheen by 4.5 percentage points. Political observers suggested Ervin and Sheheen were splitting the votes of people who didn't want the governor re-elected.
"Everybody who wants to change South Carolina, bring honesty and integrity back to the governor's office, there is one choice. It is Vincent Sheheen. Let's all rally together," Sheheen said.
The two agreed on a number of issues. When Ervin jumped in the race, he immediately took aim at Haley and her Department of Social Services, saying testimony before a Senate panel about the beating death of a 4-year-old Richland County boy prompted him to run. Months later, the agency's director resigned amid bipartisan outrage. And earlier this month, a legislative audit found the agency failed to do enough to protect abused and neglected children.
Both Ervin and Sheheen have made the department's troubles a campaign issue.
Ervin was the only candidate who advocated raising the gas tax to help fix the state's dilapidated roads and bridges, an issue he says should be a top priority.
Ervin didn't close the door on another campaign later.
And though he's ending his campaign, Ervin is still thought to be South Carolina's first-ever petition candidate on the ballot for governor. He's the first since at least 1950, before state laws governing the petition process were enacted, according to the state Election Commission.
