COLUMBIA, S.C. - All of the state's legislative seats were up for grabs Tuesday and several incumbents were upset or forced into runoffs, which made for an interesting evening.

State House Majority Leader Rick Quinn, R-Columbia, lost his primary to political newcomer Nathan Ballentine, who received 51 percent of the vote. Quinn had served in the House since 1989.

Ballentine, a banker, stressed fiscal conservatism during the campaign and touted his commitment to knock on 3,000 doors.

"I knew what I was up against," said Ballentine, who faces no opposition in the fall. Quinn is "well-thought of, particularly in the Statehouse."

Quinn, who serves as House Speaker David Wilkins' right-hand man, said late Tuesday that he had "a unique sense of calm."

"I feel like a burden has been lifted," Quinn said. "I've got a lot to be proud of, I think. I think being majority leader hurt me. There was a riding tide of anti-incumbent sentiment out there. My duties as majority leader were so time-consuming. ... I wasn't visible in my district, and I should've been. My opponent was able to take advantage of that."

Quinn said he looks forward to spending more time with his family, including his 10-month-old daughter.

In another twist, state Sen. Maggie Glover, D-Florence, will be in a runoff in two weeks. It appeared the challenger would be Tim Norwood, although he was just seven votes ahead of the third-place finisher, Kent Williams. Glover has served in the Senate since 1993 after four years in the House.

All 170 seats in the Legislature are up for grabs this year, and many incumbents faced no opposition.

A couple of races had statewide name recognition. For example, two former aides to Republican Gov. Mark Sanford were running for state Senate: Chip Campsen in the Lowcountry and Ken Wingate in the Midlands.

Sanford's former adviser and longtime friend Campsen, who said he can help Sanford and lawmakers work together, was looking to unseat incumbent Sen. John Kuhn, who currently represents the Charleston district where the Sanfords live permanently.

In unofficial returns, Campsen had 42 percent of the vote to Kuhn's 36 percent. The race will be decided in two weeks. A third challenger, Henry Fishburne, prevented an outright winner with 22 percent.

It was unclear whether Kuhn's spat with Sanford's wife, Jenny, had any effect on the race. Kuhn approached the first lady after she made a donation to Campsen's campaign. The confrontation outside the governor's office became heated with both sides blaming each other.

Fishburne said the dustup probably would hurt Kuhn's bid for re-election.

"I don't know that it helped directly either Chip or myself, but it had to hurt John," he said. "I know Jenny Sanford. She's a wonderful lady, and I can't believe John's version of that encounter was what really happened."

Campsen said he didn't harp on the incident in the final weeks of the campaign, but he did say that he wanted to change Senate rules that allow one member to halt legislation.

Kuhn, an outspoken senator who has served since 2001, took much of the blame for the death of the governor's restructuring proposal in a Senate committee. He also irked colleagues with lengthy filibusters, one of which killed an economic development bill a year ago.

That wasn't the only race closely tied to the governor.

Ken Wingate, who chaired Sanford's commission on government reform, won the Republican nomination for the Columbia-area seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Warren Giese.

Wingate, who ran against Sanford in the GOP gubernatorial primary two years ago, faced Barney Giese, who has served nine years as solicitor for Richland and Kershaw counties and wanted to replace his father.

"I think the name Giese makes a big difference in South Carolina," said Joan Revson, 46, a homemaker who voted for Barney Giese. "His dad is so well-known. He is so well-known."

Wingate combatted the name recognition by spending twice as much money on the campaign. He said he spent $200,000 mostly on television ads, mail-outs and signs, and that put him on "equal footing" with Giese, who said he spent about $90,000.

The time and money apparently paid off. Wingate took 58 percent of the vote to Giese's 42 percent.

Linda Wheeler, 49, said her children attend a private Christian school with Wingate's children and she liked his firm anti-abortion stance.

"I like that he's open about his faith," the antique dealer said.

In other interesting races, incumbent state Rep. Ted Pitts, R-Lexington, easily beat Floyd Spence Jr., son of the late U.S. Rep. Floyd Spence, R-S.C. Pitts got 60 percent of the vote to Spence's 40 percent.

Spence said he's been around politics for most of his life and thought now was the right time to run.

Archie Maddox Jr., a 41-year-old youth commissioner for the city of Columbia, said it was a difficult decision but he voted for Spence.

"Pitts had done a good job, but I think that Spence would also do a good job," Maddox said. "I wanted to give Spence an opportunity because my mother used to work for his dad, and I know what kind of character his dad had."