Interim Senator Darline Graham secured the Republican nomination for the US Senate race yesterday, August 26, setting the stage for a November election that could see South Carolina elect its first woman to the US Senate. Graham will face Democratic candidate Dr. Annie Andrews and Libertarian candidate Kasie Whitener. Mark Hackett, running for the Constitution party, will also appear on the ballot.
Graham was appointed to the Senate seat by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster in July, following the death of her brother, Senator Lindsey Graham. Her appointment made her the first woman to represent South Carolina in the US Senate. Her recent nomination marks another historic first, as she is the first woman to win the Republican nomination for US Senate in the state.
Unofficial results from yesterday’s vote showed Graham receiving 52 percent of the vote, with Representative Ralph Norman taking 48 percent. These results remain unofficial until certified by election officials. Graham celebrated her victory at a Columbia watch party, acknowledging her late brother and expressing confidence in his pride.
Graham’s campaign has received endorsements from prominent figures, including President Donald Trump, who made a campaign stop on her behalf in the Grand Strand last Friday, and Governor McMaster. Her platform focuses on lowering costs and prioritizing South Carolina families.
Dr. Annie Andrews, a pediatrician from Charleston, responded to the nomination by stating that the seat belongs to the people of South Carolina, not to any individual based on appointment, endorsement, or family connection. Andrews acknowledged the uphill battle but cited data suggesting a tied race, attributing it to voter fatigue with political polarization. Her campaign emphasizes healthcare, child welfare, and economic issues.
Libertarian candidate Kasie Whitener, a professor of entrepreneurship at the University of South Carolina, is campaigning on eliminating the national debt, a priority she believes is not adequately addressed by the Democratic or Republican parties. If any of the three female candidates win in November, they would become the first voter-elected woman to hold a US Senate seat for South Carolina.
