As the starting gun in the Republican race to succeed the late Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina is officially fired, the showdown is shaping up as the latest test of President Donald Trump’s immense clout over the GOP and the power of his endorsements in party primaries.
On the eve of Tuesday’s kickoff of a week-long filing period for the Aug. 11 primary, Sen. Darline Graham, who was appointed last week to fill the remainder of her late brother’s term, announced in an interview on Fox News’ Hannity that she’s running for a full six-year term in the Senate.
Graham’s announcement came three days after she met with Trump at the White House and the president gave her his “complete and total endorsement” as he encouraged her to run.
But Trump’s backing of Graham, while extremely potent, isn’t deterring other Republicans from jumping into the race.
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“South Carolina voters want to have a choice and not be told who they need to be voting for,” Palmetto State-based Republican consultant Dave Wilson told Fox News Digital.
Veteran Republican strategist and communicator Ryan Williams noted that “the Trump endorsement is a major boost for any candidacy, but it doesn’t necessarily give you a lock on the seat.”
“Senate seats in South Carolina do not come up very often and politics is all about timing. You’ve got to seize the opportunity when it presents itself,” Williams told Fox News Digital. “If you’re an aspiring House member in South Carolina, this is your time to run regardless of whom the president is supporting.”
Republican Rep. Ralph Norman, who unsuccessfully campaigned this year for the GOP gubernatorial nomination in the race to succeed term-limited South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, announced his intention to run this past weekend.
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And on Monday, Republican Rep. Russell Fry jumped into the race.
Businessman Mark Lynch, who lost to Lindsey Graham by nearly 30 points in last month’s GOP Senate primary, also announced he’d take another shot at the Republican nomination.
Republican Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette on Tuesday left the door open to running, writing in a social media post, “We need a strong, proven conservative to fill the shoes of a man who dedicated his life to serving the people and fighting for what South Carolina needs to support our businesses, our infrastructure, and our growing economy.”
Wilson noted that “the president’s quick endorsement of Darline Graham was very symbolic.”
But he added, “We’re seeing in South Carolina that his [the president’s] endorsement didn’t carry as much weight as people thought it was going to.”
Wilson was referring to Trump’s endorsement of Evette ahead of the GOP gubernatorial primary. Evette was the top vote getter in the primary but lost the ensuing runoff election against South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson in a landslide. Days before the runoff, with Wilson leading the public opinion polls, Trump made an 11th-hour endorsement of the attorney general in addition to his backing of Evette.
“People here in South Carolina saw that Trump’s endorsement of Evette didn’t put her over the top, and they feel like the Senate primary could also be up for grabs,” a Republican operative who asked for anonymity to speak more freely told Fox News Digital.
Trump a week ago lauded Fry, a two-term congressman who represents the northeastern corner of South Carolina, as “very talented” and “very popular,” and said he would be an “outstanding” contender for the vacant Senate seat.
Asked about Fry’s decision to launch a Senate campaign in the wake of Trump’s backing of Darline Graham, a source in Fry’s political orbit told Fox News Digital, “This is really about giving voters a choice and not a coronation.”
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Fry and Norman, both Trump allies in the House, are highlighting their support for the president.
“South Carolina doesn’t need just another senator. It needs President Trump’s strongest ally in the United States Senate. Make no mistake: I will be President Trump’s favorite U.S. Senator, and you will have a MAGA fighter you can count on,” Fry wrote in a social media post as he announced his Senate run.
Fry described himself as a “MAGA warrior” in an accompanying video, which included pictures of him smiling alongside Trump.
Norman emphasized that he’s “running to represent the people of South Carolina in the U.S. Senate because we need a fighter who will stand with President Trump and carry on Lindsey Graham’s legacy!”
And pointing to Trump’s top legislative priority, he highlighted, “I want to get the SAVE America Act passed in the Senate!”
Republican Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Rick Scott of Florida, conservatives and staunch Trump allies in the chamber, both cited Norman’s support for Trump’s election reform bill as they went against the president and endorsed the congressman. Norman is also being backed by the political arm of the powerful conservative group, Turning Point USA.
Graham does have the backing of heavy hitters in the Senate GOP, however, including Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., who said that, “Darline Graham is an excellent senator — She’ll continue to be an excellent senator, and she has my full support.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., however, is staying out of the race for now.
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Thune said that Graham is a “strong candidate,” and though she lacked elected experience, he noted she was “very accomplished in her own life.””She has a right, like everybody else, to get in that race,” Thune said.
Backed with Trump’s endorsement and enjoying plenty of name recognition thanks to her well-known last name, pundits view Darline Graham as a frontrunner in the three-week sprint to the Republican primary. And the winner of the GOP nomination will be considered the clear favorite against Democratic nominee Annie Andrews in the general election in the solidly red southeastern state.
Trump’s endorsements aren’t infallible, but his track record so far this cycle, albeit a couple of setbacks, is impressive.
But Williams noted, “There’s no downside for running. They’re all going to run as Trump Republicans, and they’re all going to flatter the president on the campaign trail.”
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A well-known House Republican who has clashed over the past year with Trump decided against a Senate run. Rep. Nancy Mace, who ran unsuccessfully this year for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, announced on Monday that she wouldn’t launch a Senate campaign.
The filing period for the Senate primary ends at noon Eastern time next Tuesday, July 28.
If no candidate tops 50% in the Aug. 11 primary, a runoff election will be held among the top two voter-getters on August 25.
If no candidate reaches 50% of the vote, a runoff election would be held in late August.
Fox News’ Tyler Olson contributed to this report.
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