Christale Spain has made history in South Carolina by being the first Black woman to become the leader of the state's Democratic Party. Spain, a longtime party operative, was elected during the party's convention on Saturday, taking over from Trav Robertson, who had led the party since 2017. Spain's election is part of a wave of changes across state Democratic parties for 2024. Thanks to the party's recent revamp of its primary schedule, four of the five states in which Democrats will vote first next year now have Black women chairing their state parties. Black women are major drivers of the Democratic electorate, particularly in South Carolina. Spain had the backing of a slew of party leaders, including Rep. Jim Clyburn, for whom Spain previously worked doing constituency service and outreach in his district office. She was also endorsed by former party leaders such as Robertson and Jaime Harrison, who preceded Robertson as state chair and currently leads the Democratic National Committee.