{"id":2643356,"date":"2026-08-11T21:01:29","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T01:01:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/darline-graham-advances-to-runoff-to-replace-brother-lindsey-graham\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T21:04:47","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T01:04:47","slug":"darline-graham-advances-to-runoff-to-replace-brother-lindsey-graham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/darline-graham-advances-to-runoff-to-replace-brother-lindsey-graham\/","title":{"rendered":"Darline Graham advances to runoff to replace brother Lindsey Graham"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdarline-graham-advances-to-runoff-to-replace-brother-lindsey-graham%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2643356&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Senator Darline Graham Nordone, a Republican from South Carolina and sister of former Senator Lindsey Graham, advanced to a runoff election to fill her late brother&#8217;s Senate seat. Backed by President Donald Trump, she secured about 33% of votes in the primary, with second place still undecided between Reps. Russell Fry and ralph Norman. south Carolina law requires over 50% to win outright, so a runoff is necessary. The race follows the recent death of Lindsey Graham and his appointment of Darline as a temporary placeholder, with Trump endorsing her for a full term. Many potential candidates withdrew or declined to run, narrowing the field to a few contenders. Trump\u2019s endorsement has boosted Graham Nordone, though she is relatively unknown. Her opponents criticized her record, especially regarding diversity policies and salary claims. The South Carolina Senate race is part of a broader trend where trump\u2019s endorsements have influenced political careers with mixed results, as recent electoral losses have tested his sway.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sen. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/darline-graham-nordone\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"23139\">Darline Graham Nordone<\/a> (R-SC), backed by President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"4\">Donald Trump<\/a>, advanced to a runoff election that will determine who will inherit the seat previously held by her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <em>Associated Press<\/em> projected Graham Nordone would head to a runoff at 8:15 p.m. At the time of the call, she held 33% of the vote with 37% of ballots counted. It\u2019s not yet clear who she will face in the Aug. 25 runoff election, with Reps. Russell Fry (R-SC) and Ralph Norman (R-SC) neck-and-neck for second place at the time of the race call for Graham Nordone.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4681391\/south-carolina-senate-special-primary-results\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Darline Graham advances to runoff in bid to replace brother in Senate<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4683670\/john-fetterman-neutral-campaign-republican-dave-mccormick\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Fetterman pledges not to campaign against Republican Dave McCormick<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4683498\/james-carville-abdul-el-sayed-support\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>James Carville offers el Sayed reluctant support after Senate candidate distances from Hasan Piker<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To avoid a runoff, Graham Nordone needed to pass the 50% threshold in Tuesday\u2019s special primary election, as South Carolina law requires a candidate to win more than half of the vote to secure their party\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Senate runoff marks the second major South Carolina GOP race to advance to a runoff this summer. State Attorney General Alan Wilson beat Lt. Gov Pamela Evette in a June gubernatorial runoff after neither candidate won outright in the primary election. Trump initially backed Evette, though he <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4620299\/trump-backs-both-candidates-south-carolina-runoff-pamela-evette-alan-wilson\/\">expanded his endorsement<\/a> when it became clear that Wilson was a serious contender.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Graham Nordone was appointed to serve out the remainder of her late brother\u2019s Senate term by Gov. Henry McMaster (R-SC) after he died <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4650854\/obituary-lindsey-graham-1955-2026\/\">unexpectedly<\/a> last month in his Washington home. Graham was headed for his fifth term after he won the Republican nomination in deep-red South Carolina.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump backed Graham Nordone initially as a caretaker before endorsing her for a full term on July 17. Graham Nordone <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4655751\/graham-nordone-run-for-full-term\/\">declared her candidacy<\/a> within days.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Graham\u2019s death and the uncertainty over whether Graham Nordone would seek a full term led to weeks of speculation about which Palmetto State Republicans would enter the race.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who lost the GOP gubernatorial nomination, publicly expressed interest before <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4656118\/nancy-mace-south-carolina-senate-withdrawal\/\">backing out<\/a> days later. Former South Carolina Gov. and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley also <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foxcarolina.com\/2026\/07\/13\/lindsey-graham-leaves-behind-open-senate-seat-what-sc-leaders-are-looking-enter-race\/\">declined<\/a> to seek the seat. Pundits even floated a candidacy from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, though the Charleston native <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4648442\/scott-bessent-no-chance-run-for-lindsey-graham-seat\/\">told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em><\/a>  that there was \u201cno chance\u201d he would run.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4656578\/who-is-running-replace-lindsey-graham-senate\/\">crop of candidates<\/a> soon narrowed to Graham Nordone, Fry, and Norman, former Gov. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4660958\/former-governor-mark-sanford-twice-in-congress-run-lindsey-graham-senate\/\">Mark Sanford<\/a>, and businessman Mark Lynch, who lost the GOP primary to Graham by 28 points in June.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., left, hugs his sister Darline Graham Nordone, after announcing his bid for presidency, Monday, June 1, 2015, in Central, S.C. (AP Photo\/Rainier Ehrhardt)<\/p>\n<p>&#8221; data-large-file=&#8221;https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/08\/localimages\/AP600322863323.jpg?w=696&#8243; &#8220;https:><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Lindsey Graham, left, hugs his sister Darline Graham Nordone, after announcing his bid for president on Monday, June 1, 2015, in Central, South Carolina (AP Photo\/Rainier Ehrhardt)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet Trump decided to keep his endorsement in the Graham family.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLindsey was one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, and his sister shares his deep love of our Country, and the State of South Carolina,\u201d Trump <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/117037774053730880\">wrote<\/a> on Truth Social.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In lending Graham Nordone his public support, Trump elevated a candidate who until July had been a political unknown. Graham Nordone has declined to answer questions at the Capitol, and she only held a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.postandcourier.com\/politics\/sc-darline-graham-interview-press-campaign\/article_5f2e3d11-b699-4a97-a31e-5c50c6257a75.html\">local press conference<\/a> two days before the election.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Graham Nordone\u2019s opponents seized on her opaque record in the weeks leading up to the election. Fry <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4680941\/darline-graham-nordone-fights-dei-accusations-work-state-agency-helps-blind\/\">ran attack ads<\/a> arguing that Graham Nordone had pushed diversity, equity, and inclusion policies while leading South Carolina\u2019s Commission for the Blind. Fry also claimed that she increased her own compensation, though salaries are set by a state commission.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019ve led a state agency for seven years where I help people who are blind find work so that they can live independently and not rely on the government, thus saving taxpayer dollars,\u201d Graham Nordone said on <em>Fox &#038; Friends<\/em> Monday morning. \u201cSo, I\u2019m not sure how that equates to DEI. I\u2019m really proud of what I did there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/4650854\/obituary-lindsey-graham-1955-2026\/\"><strong>LINDSEY GRAHAM, 1955-2026<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-5\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-26\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trump\u2019s endorsement has propelled some political careers and sunk others. During this electoral cycle alone, he intervened to push out three elected Republicans whom he saw as less-than-ideal partners: Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and John Cornyn (R-TX) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY).<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet recent losses, including two within the last week, have tested the limits of Trump\u2019s electoral influence. In Tennessee, Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4678622\/andy-ogles-charlie-hatcher-tennessee-house-primary\/\">lost his seat<\/a> after outside groups intervened for his GOP opponent. In Michigan, Trump-backed candidate Amir Hassan <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/congressional\/4675417\/tom-smith-wins-michigan-gop-primary-trump-backed-amir-hassan\/\">fell handily<\/a> to a fellow Republican who had suspended his campaign weeks earlier.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Graham Nordone, Trump-backed, advances to South Carolina runoff<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4301,"featured_media":2643357,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/image-collage-fanqlaees-1786384692582-e1786393850486.jpg?1786379857&amp;w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[4402,6571,5894,9062,41960],"class_list":["post-2643356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-congress","tag-elections","tag-politics","tag-runoff","tag-south-carolina"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/image-collage-fanqlaees-1786384692582-e1786393850486.jpg?1786379857&amp;w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2643356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4301"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2643356"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2643356\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2643359,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2643356\/revisions\/2643359"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2643357"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2643356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2643356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2643356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}