Sen. Darline Graham Nordone (R-SC) faces uncertainty ahead of Tuesday’s Republican Senate primary runoff election in South Carolina after a lackluster debate.
After polls initially placed Graham Nordone ahead of her opponent, Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), her momentum stalled after she said she was “not that informed on national security,” causing voters to question her experience. Graham Nordone was appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster (R-SC) following the unexpected death of her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
“She’s had a tough week or so, particularly after her debate performance,” Washington Examiner magazine executive editor Jim Antle said Tuesday on C-Span’s Washington Journal. “There are a lot of questions about whether her level of experience is suited for serving in that Senate seat. She clearly still has a lot of her brother’s staff still with her, but it’s going to be an interesting dynamic.”
While Graham Nordone secured most of the vote during an Aug. 11 special election, because neither candidate secured over 50%, she will face Norman in a runoff. The winner of the runoff will be the Republican nominee for Senate. Graham Nordone was encouraged to run and endorsed by President Donald Trump.
Antle said that while every Republican candidate may want the president’s stamp of approval, it is not always enough to tilt the scale.
“I think sometimes when he endorses loyalists who are not necessarily the strongest candidate, his endorsement is important, but it’s not necessarily decisive,” Antle said.
Still, Trump’s team seems determined to get its candidate across the finish line, including a last-minute push of nearly $828,000 into campaigning for Graham Nordone. Her opponent, however, has already established himself as a fifth-term congressman. Norman is a “stringent” member of the House Freedom Caucus, a factor that may have been a red flag to the president, Antle said.
RALPH NORMAN ERASES DARLINE GRAHAM NORDONE’S LEAD ON FINAL DAY OF PRIMARY: POLL
“I think the president probably doesn’t want too many of those types of people in the Senate,” Antle said. “He wants people who are cooperative. He wants people to be supportive of the administration’s agenda.”
Lindsey Graham was a close ally of Trump before his death, and Antle said the president’s support for the late senator’s sister may also have been paying tribute. The election results will start coming in on Tuesday after polls close at 7 p.m.