Democrat Annie Andrews wins South Carolina Senate race, defeating Lindsey Graham's sister

Democrat Annie Andrews scored a narrow and unexpected victory in South Carolina on Tuesday, defeating interim Senator Darline Graham, the sister of the late Lindsey Graham, who had sought to win her brother's seat in her own right. Andrews is the first Democrat to win a US Senate race in the deeply conservative state in 28 years.

Andrews, a pediatrician from Charleston, also made history as the first woman elected to represent South Carolina in the US Senate. She had secured the Democratic nomination outright in June, initially building her campaign around a challenge to Lindsey Graham before his sudden death in July reshaped the race.

Speaking to supporters on election night, Andrews framed her win as a rejection of politics as usual. "You have shown the nation that in this era of partisan divides, of vitriol and name-calling, in a politics dominated by billionaires and special interest groups and insiders in Washington, DC, that we will not bow down," she said.

Darline Graham had served as interim senator since July, when Republican Governor Henry McMaster appointed her to fill the remaining months of her brother's term. A political newcomer, she had previously worked as an optician and in state agencies, including the Commission for the Blind and the Department of Employment and Workforce, and holds a master's degree in rehabilitation counseling.

US President Donald Trump had called her appointment a "fabulous tribute" to her late brother and quickly endorsed her. She went on to defeat Representative Ralph Norman in a Republican primary runoff, campaigning largely on domestic conservative priorities while acknowledging that "national security is not my thing" and "I'm not that informed on national security." The Republican Jewish Coalition also backed her shortly after she entered the race.

In an emotional concession speech, Graham congratulated Andrews and urged the crowd to remain as proud of her brother as she is. "This is a tough cycle, and all of us need to be involved as we chart a path forward. It is clear that we as conservatives have work to do, and that work starts tonight," she said.

As results came in Tuesday night and Republicans appeared at risk of losing their congressional majorities, with tight races also in Texas and Iowa, Trump wrote on social media: "I wasn't on the Ballot and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE! Thank you for your attention to this matter."

Lindsey Graham died suddenly on July 11 of an aortic dissection at age 71, after 23 years in the Senate and eight in the US House. A prominent foreign policy hawk and close Trump ally, he was a longtime member of the Senate Armed Services and Budget committees and had traveled to Israel about a dozen times since Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack. After their parents died young, he raised his sister and became her legal guardian; the two remained very close, and she stood beside him, with her children and grandchildren, when he filed reelection paperwork earlier this year.

Andrews has expressed support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying Israelis and Palestinians both "deserve to live in peace," and has criticized what she has described as the humanitarian crisis in the region.