COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina Republican voters return to the polls Tuesday to decide who will carry the party’s banner into November’s general election for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s seat. A special primary earlier this month ended without a clear winner, forcing a runoff between Graham’s sister, Sen. Darline Graham, and five-term Congressman Ralph Norman. The outcome will test President Trump’s political influence in a state he has carried twice.
It has been a frantic six weeks since Graham’s death on July 11. Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to fill the remainder of her brother’s term, and she immediately entered the race to keep the seat in the family. She topped the Aug. 11 special election with about 33% of the vote, while Norman took roughly 25%. A third candidate, Rep. Russell Fry, finished behind them. But with no candidate reaching the majority threshold, South Carolina’s runoff rules kicked in.
Trump has made this race personal. He encouraged Graham to run, endorsed her, and traveled to Myrtle Beach for an Aug. 21 rally where he framed the contest as a tribute to her late brother. “I’m doing this to honor Lindsey,” Trump said. “So, Darline, we got to win that race.” His super PAC, MAGA Inc., has poured more than $827,000 into the race. That financial commitment stands out, especially given that Trump’s PAC has largely sat on the sidelines during several other contested primaries this cycle — and not always with winning results.
Trump has watched endorsed candidates stumble in Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, Wyoming, and even in South Carolina’s gubernatorial primary in June. Still, some voters say the endorsement is secondary. Ray Saldi, 60, voted for Graham, but he insisted the nod from Trump wasn’t what sealed it. “I really liked her brother, Lindsey Graham. I just wanted to make sure that she’s truly genuine to the people of South Carolina,” Saldi said. The familiar last name and a near-blank political slate pulled him in, he explained, because it felt like she would put the state first.
Graham has never held elected office before her appointment, but she inherits a seasoned campaign apparatus. Her brother had been in public office since 1995, first in the House and then in the Senate. His state and Washington teams built a reputation for constituent services, and Graham has leaned heavily on that legacy. “I want to continue to fight to finish what he was doing,” she told supporters in Aiken on Monday. “He helped this state. He brought resources to this state. And you know what? If we don’t bring them here, they’re going to go somewhere else, right?”
Yet she is not as hawkish as her brother. During the only debate before the runoff, hosted by NewsMax, Graham drew boos when she said, “I’m just going to be honest here. I’m not that informed on national security.” The question was about Taiwan and the South China Sea—issues that Lindsey Graham, a defense hawk, had made his career. That answer exposed a vulnerability Norman has been quick to highlight.
Norman, who placed third in this year’s gubernatorial primary, is playing the underdog. “I love being an underdog,” he said after voting Tuesday. “Our people are going to get out and vote. The electricity that we’ve had has been great.” He also attracts some Trump skeptics. While Norman aligns with the president on most issues, he endorsed his longtime friend Nikki Haley in her 2024 presidential bid against Trump. Haley has returned the favor, with outside groups aligned to her spending more than $700,000 to support Norman.
Graham, meanwhile, has turned her lack of political experience into a talking point. “The critics say I shouldn’t run for the Senate. They say I’m not a politician. You know what I say? Guilty as charged,” she said at the Myrtle Beach rally, adding, “By the way, President Trump has never served in elected office before and I think he’s done a damn good job.”
Whoever wins will face Democratic nominee Annie Andrews, a pediatrician, in November. The seat is widely considered safe for Republicans, but the runoff itself will show whether Trump’s endorsement carries the day in a state where his influence has shown cracks.
