Trump Backs Darline Graham Nordone for Nov. Senate Race as Aug. 11 GOP Primary Looms
Updated
Updated · TIME · Jul 17
Trump Backs Darline Graham Nordone for Nov. Senate Race as Aug. 11 GOP Primary Looms
3 articles · Updated · TIME · Jul 17
Summary
July 18 brought Trump’s endorsement of newly appointed Sen. Darline Graham Nordone for a full Senate term, after he urged her at the White House to enter South Carolina’s Aug. 11 Republican special primary.
Nordone, sworn in July 14 after Gov. Henry McMaster appointed her to replace her late brother Lindsey Graham, has never held elected office and would serve only until January without a campaign.
An Emerson/Nexstar poll released July 16 showed Ralph Norman at 16%, Nancy Mace at 10% and Graham Nordone at 6%, with 18% undecided, underscoring how much Trump’s backing could reshape a crowded race.
Norman says he will stay in despite losing Trump’s support, while Republicans view the seat as important to protecting a 51-48 Senate edge narrowed by Mitch McConnell’s medical leave.
If Nordone runs and wins, she would become the first person in U.S. history to succeed a sibling in the Senate.