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Trump backs Darline
President Donald Trump urged Darline Graham to run for a full term in the U.S. Senate to replace her late brother, Lindsey Graham, after Trump met with her at the White House and wrote on social media that she has his “Complete and Total Endorsement.”
Trump said he “asked Darline, for the Good of our Nation, to run for the U.S. Senate in the Special Republican Primary on Tuesday, August 11, 2026,” as South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to serve the remainder of Lindsey Graham’s term through early January.
The endorsement reshaped the scramble to fill Lindsey Graham’s seat after he died Saturday at age 71, with a preliminary medical examiner report saying he suffered a tear in his aorta.
The filing period for the special primary runs from July 21 to July 28, and the primary is scheduled for Aug. 11, with a service in Washington on July 28 and more in South Carolina on July 29.
Darline Graham, who was sworn in as senator after her brother’s death, called it “such an honor,” saying, “Lindsey has always been there for me. And now, I will be there for him.”
Republican reactions diverge
Sen. Tim Scott told reporters he would not endorse any candidate in the primary because he also serves as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, but he said, “as Tim Scott, the voter of South Carolina, I might indeed wade into the water at some point.”
Scott also said, “I think the truth of the matter is that Darline has so far been off to a remarkable start,” and asked about her as a possible special primary contender with “‘Why not her?’ would be my question.”
The Post and Courier reported that Trump’s backing was announced in a July 17 social media post after Trump met with Darline Graham in the Oval Office, and it said she had not returned messages to her office.
The Hill described Trump’s request as coming during a Friday meeting with newly appointed Sen. Darline Graham Nordone and said Trump asked her to run in the special Republican primary for a full term, while noting she had not formally announced plans to run for a full term that would stretch until 2033.
CBS News reported that Darline Graham was engaged in “serious discussions” about running for a full Senate term, and it confirmed Trump’s public encouragement after her White House meeting.
What’s at stake next
The special Republican primary is set for Aug. 11, and the winner will face Democrat Annie Andrews in November, according to the Guardian’s account of the state’s replacement process after Lindsey Graham’s death.
“Trump says he asked Darline Graham to run in special Senate primary - President Donald Trump endorsed Darline Graham for the U”
The Guardian said Lindsey Graham was running for a fifth term and had won his primary last month, and it described Trump’s endorsement as “muddl[ing] the contest” that had attracted interest from Republican elected officials across South Carolina.
NBC News reported that Darline Graham was appointed earlier this week by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster to serve out the rest of Sen. Lindsey Graham’s term through early January, and it said the special election would fill the seat for a full term.
PBS reported that under federal rules, Lindsey Graham’s campaign would be limited to transferring just $2,000 to a potential Darline Graham candidacy, while Bradley A. Smith said there is no limit on how much it could transfer to the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
The Washington Post said Trump’s endorsement followed an earlier expectation that Graham would serve “only on an interim basis” and that Trump had suggested Rep. Russell Fry could run for the full term, as the filing period opens Tuesday and the primary could go to a runoff on Aug. 25 if no candidate wins a majority of the vote.
