South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster raised just over $1 million in the final quarter of 2017, ending the year with almost $2.6 million cash on hand as he heads into the campaign season.

The figure, obtained from the State Ethics Commission's online records, marked the Republican incumbent's best quarterly fundraising report since taking over the governorship nearly a year ago. McMaster's campaign says 72 percent of those contributions came from in-state donors.

McMaster is backed by President Donald Trump, who came to South Carolina in October to raise money for McMaster and give his official endorsement. McMaster campaign officials told The Associated Press on Thursday they received an invoice earlier this month from the White House for around $21,000 to cover costs associated with the trip, an expense that will be reflected in next quarter's fundraising records.

As lieutenant governor, McMaster was the first statewide-elected official in the country to back Trump's candidacy, endorsing him ahead of the 2016 South Carolina primary. After his election, Trump picked then-Gov. Nikki Haley as his U.N. ambassador, clearing McMaster's path to the governorship.

Several Republicans are challenging McMaster for this year's GOP nomination. Former state labor chief Catherine Templeton brought in $720,000 in the same time period, nearly 80 percent of which was raised in-state, and ended the year with $2.3 million on hand. Lt. Gov. Kevin Bryant raised nearly $46,000 in the final quarter of 2017, ending the year with $256,000 on hand.

On the Democratic side, state Rep. James Smith brought in more than $525,000 last quarter. Phil Noble raised almost $98,000.