Late-Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) sister Sen. Darline Graham Nordone (R-SC) and Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) will both advance to an Aug. 25 runoff to determine which Republican will appear on the ballot in November to replace Graham after his unexpected death earlier this summer. The Associated Press projected Graham’s sister would advance early in the night, but it was unclear if Norman or Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC) would clear the hurdle until moments ago when the AP determined Norman would advance as well. None of the candidates were able to secure the majority of the vote to avoid a runoff.
With 90 percent of the vote counted Norman trails Graham Nordone significantly, with 23% of the vote to her 33% in tonight’s special election.
Norman recently badly lost the primary for the Republican nomination for governor alongside fellow Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC).
While President Trump has mostly thrown his weight behind Graham Nordone, endorsing her as Graham’s interim replacement and calling on her to run for the the seat permanently, Norman has demonstrated his allegiance to Trump and his holy war on elections. As TPM readers, you’ll recall that TPM broke the news that Norman urged the White House to invoke “Marshall Law” in the aftermath of the 2020 election.
