Overview
- Appointed Sen. Darline Graham advanced from the crowded special Republican primary held on Aug. 11 and will face Rep. Ralph Norman after no candidate exceeded the state’s required 50% threshold.
- Governor Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to fill her late brother Lindsey Graham’s term, giving her the short-term incumbency advantage that shaped the compressed primary contest.
- President Trump publicly backed Graham and says he will continue to support her, while rivals and some voters criticized the appointment and endorsement as an attempted “coronation.”
- The Aug. 25 runoff creates a two-week window for candidates to consolidate supporters of eliminated contenders and for outside groups and party committees to influence the outcome.
- The winner of the GOP runoff is heavily favored in November against Democrat Annie Andrews in a reliably Republican state, and the result will show how endorsements and rapid organizing matter under South Carolina’s runoff rules.