20% of SC Voters Want Colbert to Replace DeMint

Gov. Nikki Haley may not be into the idea, but her fellow South Carolinians really want to see Stephen Colbert replace Jim DeMint in the Senate. A Public Policy Poll finds that 20% of voters have the Comedy Central host at the top of their wish list, followed by Tim Scott (15%), Trey Gowdy (14%), and Jenny Sanford (11%). Mark Sanford even made it on 8% of the wish lists, even though just 30% of voters have a good opinion of him two years after he left office. But 44% of voters like Jenny Sanford, and if Colbert really is out of the running, she tops the DeMint replacement wish lists at 17%.

Haley may want to reconsider her stance on Colbert, since choosing him could boost her popularity—right now her approval rating is just 42%, making her one of the country's least popular governors. But so far, the only clue she's given as to whom she'll appoint is that it won't be a "placeholder" who agrees not to run for re-election, Politico reports. In a statement today, Haley said she doesn't want to undermine the effectiveness of DeMint's replacement, and thinks the state "will be best served by a US Senator who will work hard day in and day out." That could signal Scott as her likely choice, Politico notes. (More Stephen Colbert stories.)