Former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford endorsed Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) ahead of President Donald Trump‘s Friday campaign stop for Sen. Darline Graham Nordone (R-SC), Norman’s opponent in the special primary election runoff to replace the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
“Are there things on which I disagree with Ralph, absolutely,” Sanford wrote in a statement Friday. “But again there are no carbon copies as candidates, and I have seen first hand his experience in legislative circles, matched by a conservative voting record and conservative stands.”
Sanford added that he based his decision on his concerns regarding federal government spending, the national debt, and the resulting deficits, despite his relationships with both Graham Nordone and her deceased brother, whom she replaced in the Senate in July.
“I am freaked about this issue given our crossing of the $40 trillion federal debt mark this week,” he wrote. “It has heinous implications for all of us. And so as much as I would like to honor tradition and old friendships, the stakes are simply too high as our nation really is at a financial tipping point. It’s for these reasons and more that I will be voting for Ralph on Tuesday and respectfully ask that you do the same.”
Sanford’s endorsement came hours before Trump is scheduled to address a rally for Graham Nordone at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.
Sanford has been a longtime critic of Trump, particularly over his economic policies and spending positions, which resulted in the president, during his first term, campaigning against him in 2018, five years after the former governor returned to Congress, including endorsing his then-primary challenger to represent South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, Katie Arrington.
A year later, Sanford tried to primary Trump in his 2020 reelection campaign, before suspending his bid two months later.
Sanford, who considered running for Congress again earlier this year, ran to replace Graham in the special primary but finished in fourth and missed the runoff.
Trump did not respond to a shouted question from the Washington Examiner this week with respect to whether he watched Graham Nordone’s debate in which she made several missteps, including misstating the population of South Carolina.