Fox News just moved South Carolina's Senate race to toss-up, and the GOP machine is dumping millions to save a seat it handed to a nepotism appointee who admits she can't answer basic questions about national security.
Sen. Darline Graham — appointed by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster to replace her late brother Lindsey after his sudden death in July — is now tied at 48% with Democratic nominee Annie Andrews, according to a New York Times/Siena poll released Wednesday. This in a state Trump carried by 20 points in 2024. A state that hasn't sent a Democrat to the Senate since 2005.
The Senate Leadership Fund, the GOP's main campaign arm, poured $5 million into South Carolina in early October after spending exactly nothing on Graham's behalf beforehand, the Daily Caller reported. That late cash surge is the tell: party brass knew this seat was slipping and scrambled to prop up a candidate who has given them almost nothing to work with.
At an August primary debate, Newsmax host Greta Van Susteren asked Graham whether Taiwan and the South China Sea are national security issues for the United States. Graham's answer: "I'm just going to be honest here. I'm not that informed on national security. So … But I do support the military." The New York Daily News characterized her debate performance more bluntly, noting she "admitted 'foreign policy is not my thing.'"
The contrast with her late brother is stark. Lindsey Graham was one of the Senate's most vocal hawks — he backed the Iran war, pushed for a U.S. ground takeover of Kharg Island, urged billions for Ukraine, and called for Vladimir Putin's assassination in March 2022. His sister, handed his seat as a placeholder, can't articulate a position on the Pacific theater.
Graham barely survived her own primary. She defeated Rep. Ralph Norman by just 4 points in the August runoff after receiving Trump's endorsement. Norman isn't campaigning with her now. He accused Trump of spending millions "spreading false narratives about why Darline Graham is qualified to be elected to the U.S. Senate," according to Fox News. Rep. Nancy Mace was more succinct: "It's a f---ing train wreck."
South Carolina Freedom Conference Chairman Jordan Pace told the Daily Caller in August that the party did not support Graham serving a full term.
Trump headed back to South Carolina Thursday night for his second rally in a month. "He was a great politician," Trump said of Lindsey Graham. "She's got the gene." Graham returned the favor: "Lindsey considered you one of his dearest friends and you will always be considered part of the Graham family. We love you."
The Fox News Power Rankings noted that Graham underperformed in the Upstate region during her primary runoff — the same area Trump is targeting Thursday night. The broader picture is grim for Republicans: Fox's own polling shows Democrats with growing advantages among independent, rural, and Hispanic voters, and the administration's Iran war has cast a shadow over GOP approval ratings nationwide.
The question South Carolina voters face in seven days: is a Senate seat a family heirloom, or does it belong to the people who cast ballots? The GOP machine has made its bet — $5 million and counting that dynasty beats competence.
