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Because states will by and large be most comparable to their closest neighbors. Alabama is overall more comparable to SC mostly in a statistically quantitative sense and because of that, it is a reasonable contender here but in a qualitative sense, elements of a shared culture, history, geography, etc. put GA (and NC) in the running easily.
Except Charlotte extends into SC. It basically is the unofficial capital of both Carolina’s
Yep. Charlotte is obviously a city in NC but is truly a city made and shaped extensively by both Carolinas in key ways. Not many people outside the region are aware of Charlotte occasionally being jokingly referred to by NC'ers as "the biggest city in SC" lol.
I would say Louisiana for several reasons and I'm from Louisiana.
IN certain aspects Charleston feels like a more idyllic version of New Orleans or at least Uptown. There are similar architectural styles and some of the streets feel similar except Charleston is cleaner and better maintained. Lowcountry cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine are not the same but there are some similarities with the use of seafood and spices and the African and Caribbean influences. Shrimp and grits are popular in both South Carolina and Louisiana though made differently. The City Market in Charleston kind of feels like the French Market in New Orleans.
The Hugenots of South Carolina are like the opposites of the Cajuns. Cajuns were French Catholics expelled by the British from Canada during the religious conflicts of the day while Hugenots were French Protestants who were expelled from France by French Catholics.
Both the South Carolina Lowcountry and South Louisiana have a similar coastal, flat Deep South landscape with both a lot of live oaks and Spanish moss and pine forests. Both have a similar antebellum plantation history as well and both states have a lot of beautiful old plantations and gardens worth visiting. Politically Louisiana and South Carolina are almost entirely alike with a white population that is overwhelmingly conservative and a black population that is overwhelmingly Democrat. North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia all have large numbers of liberal white non Southern transplants that have influenced these states cultures and politics while Louisiana and South Carolina are still dominated by native Southerners. Charleston is a liberal island and New Orleans is a liberal island, both surrounded by very conservative suburbs (compare with the swaths of liberalism in Northern Virginia, the Charlotte suburbs and the Atlanta suburbs).
North Carolina is an Upper South state with a very different feeling than SC. There are lot more mountains and there is less of a history of plantation agriculture. The climate is also much colder and snowier and most of North Carolina is dominated by different vegetation than South Carolina. Most of NC does not have swamps and bayous, neither than live oak, magnolias or Spanish moss grow well in most of North Carolina's climate.
Because states will by and large be most comparable to their closest neighbors. Alabama is overall more comparable to SC mostly in a statistically quantitative sense and because of that, it is a reasonable contender here but in a qualitative sense, elements of a shared culture, history, geography, etc. put GA (and NC) in the running easily.
I would say Louisiana for several reasons and I'm from Louisiana.
IN certain aspects Charleston feels like a more idyllic version of New Orleans or at least Uptown. There are similar architectural styles and some of the streets feel similar except Charleston is cleaner and better maintained. Lowcountry cuisine and Louisiana Creole cuisine are not the same but there are some similarities with the use of seafood and spices and the African and Caribbean influences. Shrimp and grits are popular in both South Carolina and Louisiana though made differently. The City Market in Charleston kind of feels like the French Market in New Orleans.
The Hugenots of South Carolina are like the opposites of the Cajuns. Cajuns were French Catholics expelled by the British from Canada during the religious conflicts of the day while Hugenots were French Protestants who were expelled from France by French Catholics.
Both the South Carolina Lowcountry and South Louisiana have a similar coastal, flat Deep South landscape with both a lot of live oaks and Spanish moss and pine forests. Both have a similar antebellum plantation history as well and both states have a lot of beautiful old plantations and gardens worth visiting. Politically Louisiana and South Carolina are almost entirely alike with a white population that is overwhelmingly conservative and a black population that is overwhelmingly Democrat. North Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia all have large numbers of liberal white non Southern transplants that have influenced these states cultures and politics while Louisiana and South Carolina are still dominated by native Southerners. Charleston is a liberal island and New Orleans is a liberal island, both surrounded by very conservative suburbs (compare with the swaths of liberalism in Northern Virginia, the Charlotte suburbs and the Atlanta suburbs).
North Carolina is an Upper South state with a very different feeling than SC. There are lot more mountains and there is less of a history of plantation agriculture. The climate is also much colder and snowier and most of North Carolina is dominated by different vegetation than South Carolina. Most of NC does not have swamps and bayous, neither than live oak, magnolias or Spanish moss grow well in most of North Carolina's climate.
Except Charleston isn’t the IT city in SC like New Orleans dominates LA. Maybe name wise , but Columbia, Greenville, and Charleston are roughly the same size in MSA population and add Myrtle Beach, Spartanburg, Clemson (which are not flat) Hilton Head, Charlotte suburbs as you mentioned, it just doesn’t add up to THE Low Country as all anyone thinks about as the population is almost evenly distributed . I’m from SC and been to Louisiana a few times and just do not see the similarities one bit. Charleston being a smaller NOLA and that’s it.
I don't see much similarity between South Carolina and Louisiana other than attributes that exist across the South in general.
South Carolina is one of the fastest growing states, while Louisiana has been stagnant at best for years and has one of the nation's lowest proportions of residents born elsewhere. In 2022 estimates South Carolina's growth rate was 3rd highest (after Florida and Idaho) while Louisiana had the 3rd greatest decline (after New York and Illinois).
South Carolina is much more diversified economically, with extensive manufacturing (e.g. automotive) and service industries. Louisiana remains very dependent on the oil & gas sector and also has some casinos and other draws for tourism.
Unlike Louisiana, South Carolina has extensive hilly and mountainous topography in the northwest part of the state. While the extent of such areas is more limited than in neighboring North Carolina and Georgia, there is nothing comparable in Louisiana.
While both states are solidly Republican in federal races, South Carolina's margins (11.7% in 2020 presidential) are considerably lower than Louisiana's (18.6%). This is the case even as Louisiana has a considerably higher Black proportion of residents. Most likely (a) Black voter participation is lower in Louisiana and (b) South Carolina's White voters are not as overwhelmingly Republican. Also the state's major metro where Democrats have the strongest performance is actually Columbia, not Charleston.
I don’t quite see it that way, but it’s a valid point of view.
The roller coaster below actually begins in Charlotte, then crosses into Fort Mill SC, and then finishes back in Charlotte.
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