Darline Graham Advances to SC Senate Runoff Against Ralph Norman

A closely watched Republican battle for a Senate seat will require one more election after voters failed to give any candidate enough support to finish the contest Tuesday night.

President Donald Trump put his endorsement behind one contender and personally appealed to voters before the primary, but even that support was not enough to prevent another round of voting.

Sen. Darline Graham and Rep. Ralph Norman advanced to an Aug. 25 Republican runoff for the remainder of the term of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, according to AP race calls.

Darline Graham, who was appointed by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster last month following her brother’s death, received enough votes to advance but failed to reach the threshold necessary to win the crowded Republican primary outright.

The runoff gives Graham less than two weeks to convince Republican voters to keep her in the Senate against Norman, a House Freedom Caucus member who has represented South Carolina in Congress since 2017.