McMaster tells SC voters to oppose ‘frat boy Joe’ in first TV ad before election

The age debate is officially on in the South Carolina governor’s race.

On Tuesday, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster released his first TV ad head of the general election, telling voters in the new spot to oppose “frat boy Joe.”

“Joe drinks beer in Congress,” the 30-second ad says. “Joe blows a foghorn in congressional hearings. Joe wants to be internet famous. Joe loves weed and voted against the police. Joe voted 88% with (Speaker Nancy) Pelosi. So Joe lost his seat in Congress. Now he wants to be governor. No thanks Joe, but we’ll call if we have a frat party.”

As he seeks his second full term in November, McMaster, 75 is being challenged by Democrat Joe Cunningham, who is 35 years younger than the governor.

Cunningham, who represented the Lowcountry for one term in the U.S. House and was not in a fraternity in college, has called for an end to the “geriatric oligarchy,” saying there should be an age limit for holding political office, similar to the state’s age limit on judges.

McMaster’s ad is running statewide on network and cable television. His campaign did not immediately release the cost of running the ad, which included video clips of Cunningham.

As part of his campaign for governor, Cunningham has endorsed legalizing marijuana for both medical and recreational purposes. And he’s used the video social media app TikTok to engage younger voters.

While in the House, Cunningham opened a can of beer on the floor in a farewell speech in Congress to toast his colleagues in the spirit of bipartisanship. He also blew a foghorn during a congressional hearing to show that seismic testing used to drill offshore for oil can be harmful to aquatic life.

Cunningham senior advisor Tyler Jones said McMaster is resorting to attacks as the state Legislature debates further abortion restrictions. Cunningham’s campaign also has pointed to high crime rates, poor road conditions and a growing teacher shortage during McMaster’s tenure.

“Henry McMaster is so out of touch with the people of South Carolina that he actually thinks highlighting Joe’s support for marijuana legalization in an ad is a bad thing. McMaster wants to control your life, probably because he can’t seem to control anything else in South Carolina,” Jones said. “One thing is undeniably true: you don’t attack your opponent in your first TV ad unless you’re worried. Henry McMaster is worried. As he should be.”