[REVISION HISTORY]

SC Senate race 2026 – Primary held, Norman vs Nordone runoff

Updated 25 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-08-21 02:13 UTC → 2026-08-21 13:09 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The special election to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by Sen. Lindsey Graham’s death continues to dominate South Carolina politics. Following Graham’s death on July 11 from an aortic dissection, the Republican field has consolidated around ten candidates. On August 11, South Carolina Republicans held the special primary to select a nominee. The contest featured several prominent figures, including Rep. Ralph Norman, Rep. Russell Fry, former governor Mark Sanford, and interim Sen. Darline Graham Nordone. While Nordone—the late senator’s sister—led the field with approximately 32.7% of the vote, no candidate secured an outright majority, necessitating a runoff. As the August 25 runoff approaches, Rep. Ralph Norman has positioned himself as a “known quantity” on national issues, specifically targeting the SAVE Act to argue that election security is essential to maintaining a republic. Norman has criticized the “Washington elite” for supporting Nordone, whom he characterized as an “unknown” despite her being a “nice person.” He has also called Donald Trump’s endorsement of Nordone a “head scratcher” and labeled her the “establishment’s” ~~candidate in campaign advertisements.~~ candidate. During a televised debate, Nordone faced intense scrutiny regarding foreign ~~policy, a key issue previously championed by her late brother.~~ policy. When questioned about U.S. interests in Taiwan and the South China Sea, Nordone stated, “I’m not that informed on national security... national security is not my thing, not my area of expertise, but I do support the military.” ~~Norman used the exchange to argue that the Senate role does not allow for “training on the job.”~~ Following the ~~debate,~~ exchange, Nordone ~~defended her remarks on Fox News, telling Sean Hannity that~~ attempted damage control by stating she is “not a ~~career~~ politician” and arguing that voters are more concerned with the ~~economy, the Second Amendment,~~ economy and ~~transgender athletes~~ immigration. To bolster her bid, President Donald Trump has endorsed Nordone and is scheduled to campaign for her at a rally in ~~sports.~~ Myrtle Beach.

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