ROCK HILL, S.C. — Darline Graham made waves on Monday when she said she will run for U.S. Senate after being appointed to fill her brother’s seat following his sudden death.
The late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s sister says she wants to replace him on the November ballot. But there are other big local names in politics who say they want to be the Republican nominee too.
[ RELATED >> Darline Graham sworn in as SC’s interim US senator ]
Most in South Carolina politics thought Darline would be an interim appointment, but then President Donald Trump endorsed her. Now, she’s telling Sean Hannity that she will run for the seat.
Channel 9’s Joe Bruno spoke with voters and experts in South Carolina about the whirlwind move. Darline will have to file to run for office before her brother’s memorials have all been finished.
Darline will also only have three weeks to introduce herself to Republican voters, many of whom don’t know her stances on any issues.
“She is purely just related to Lindsey Graham, has no background in politics or even any opinions, from what I’ve seen,” said Anthony Baker, a voter in Rock Hill.
Over the weekend, Rock Hill Congressman Ralph Norman announced he will run to replace Lindsey Graham in the Senate race. On Monday morning, Chesterfield Congressman Russell Fry said he will enter the race.
The announcements came despite Trump’s endorsement of Graham. South Carolinians did reject Trump’s endorsement in the governor’s race. It remains to be seen how much influence he will have on the U.S. Senate contest.
“People have got eyes on South Carolina trying to see where the direction of the party is going for the Republicans,” said Dr. Shannon Brigdon with the University of South Carolina.
Norman and Fry have name recognition, money, and records.
Graham’s biggest challenge will be introducing herself to voters while dealing with the stress of her brother’s passing. But she’ll have a lot of help.
“A lot of her opponents can self-finance, so she’s got a lot to do in a very short amount of time, but there’s a lot of people who are probably going to step up and help,” said Dr. Scott Huffmon with Winthrop University.
Russell Fry is on the ballot already because he was running for the 7th Congressional District. If he wins both that seat and Senate, his house seat will remain vacant until May. If that happens, there’s a chance that could have an impact on who is Speaker of the House.
It’s possible South Carolina state lawmakers would attempt to change this timeline.