South Carolina Republicans will decide Tuesday who will replace Sen. Lindsey Graham on the ballot in November's midterm election, after a rushed campaign in the wake of his
in July.
asserted
who → decide → July
Graham's sister, Sen. Darline Graham, faces Rep. Ralph Norman in Tuesday's runoff vote.
asserted
sister → face → vote
The two candidates were the top two vote-getters in the special primary election on Aug. 11, with Darline Graham getting nearly 33% of the vote to Norman's almost 25%, after neither won 50% of the vote.
asserted
neither → get → vote
The runoff contest comes after Darline Graham was appointed to serve out the remainder of her late brother's term, which ends early next year.
asserted
which → come → term
The four-term senator had been seeking reelection, and had already won the Republican primary in June.
asserted
senator → seek → June
The winner of Tuesday's runoff will take on Dr. Annie Andrews, who won the Democratic primary in June.
asserted
who → take → June
Although the South Carolina Senate race is usually a fundraising boon to Democrats, the state remains solidly Republican and has just one Democratic representative in Congress.
asserted
state → remain → Congress
President Trump, who had been close with Lindsey Graham, has thrown his support behind Darline Graham.
asserted
who → throw → Graham
He
last week and held a tele-rally for her on Monday.
asserted
He → hold → Monday
Darline Graham, who has no prior experience in elected office, has also garnered the support of South Carolina's other senator, GOP Sen. Tim Scott, who said after her first few weeks in the Senate and her first-place finish in the primary that he's "confident she's the real deal."
asserted
she → have → primary
The newly minted senator has billed herself as "a problem solver, a critical thinker, and a leader," with decades of experience working for South Carolina.
asserted
senator → mint → Carolina
Darline Graham, 62, most recently served as commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind.
asserted
Graham → serve → Blind
She has focused on domestic issues during the brief campaign, and her lack of a foreign policy background has raised some questions about her preparedness.
asserted
lack → focus → preparedness
In a debate last week, Graham conceded that she's inexperienced in some regards, most notably when she
about Taiwan and the South China Sea.
asserted
she → concede → Taiwan
She said she's "not that informed on national security," in a stark contrast to her brother, an outspoken foreign policy hawk.
asserted
she → say → brother
"I'm not a polished politician," Graham said.
asserted
Graham → say → ?
"National security is not my thing, not my area of expertise, but I do support the military.
asserted
I → support → military
Graham had a close relationship with her brother, who never married or had children.
asserted
who → have → children
She's cited their upbringing, where she and her brother observed their parents working long hours at their bar and liquor store in central South Carolina, for their shared work ethic.
asserted
parents → cite → ethic
And as she's pledged to carry out her brother's legacy, she's also emphasized that she would chart her own path in the Senate, which could be more conservative than her brother's.
uncertain
which → pledge → brother
During last week's debate, she quickly made her views on transgender athletes in sports, abortion and gun rights known.
asserted
views → make → sports
Meanwhile, Norman, who has represented South Carolina in the House since 2017, has presented himself as an experienced legislator with a track record as a conservative fighter, while calling Graham an "unknown candidate."
The real estate developer and longtime member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus
asserted
who → represent → Caucus
And for Norman, who was one of only two House Republicans to back former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in her bid to challenge Mr. Trump for the GOP nomination in 2024, it wasn't the first time he's been willing to break with the president.
asserted
he → back → president
Norman, 73, has the backing of Haley, who also served as ambassador to the U.N. during the first Trump administration, and called out Darline Graham's lack of experience after her debate performance.
asserted
who → have → performance
"Lindsey Graham was well informed on the United States' national security.
asserted
Graham → inform → security
Darline Graham admits she's not," Haley said on X. "This is not something you inherit.
asserted
you → admit → X.
The Aporia
