Is Sen. Darline Graham a Conservative?

Lindsey Graham's replacement in the Senate, his sister Darline, won Trump's endorsement for the special election as the Republican Senate candidate from South Carolina in the November general election. But who is she? And is she actually a conservative?

Darline's primary involvement in politics has been as a supporter and confidante of her brother Lindsey, so it's hard to know what her positions really are. She has been the state Commissioner for the Blind since 2019 and serves on the state Workforce Development Commission. Her only public involvement in politics has been as an advocate for the successful repeal of a sub-minimum wage allowed for the disabled. Her only campaign donation was to her close friend, the pro-abortion Republican state senator Katrina Shealy, to whom she donated $100 in 2020. It's fair to say that she is a political neophyte with almost no track record.

Her campaign website touts her conservative values without giving any specifics. She released a statement listing the pro-life measures she would support in the Senate, but she omitted her position on one of Lindsey's legislative priorities, a federal 15-week heartbeat bill. She told Hannity that she would de-emphasize Lindsey's preoccupation with national security and focus more on affordability. Maybe this is an astute political move, but she clearly won't be the hawk that her brother was. Lindsey played the tricky role well of being a national security hawk while also being influential with Trump. Lindsey advocated boldly for arming Ukraine, while still being a close supporter of Trump. Can a political newbie such as Darline continue to play this important role? Her first campaign ad listed three things she believes in: every life is precious, men don't belong in women's sports, and only citizens should vote in elections. Those are good words, but there are no specifics.

Then there is the question of whether she is even eligible to run. The South Carolina Republican Party requires that candidates have voted Republican in two of the last three statewide primaries. She has voted in one statewide primary and one primary runoff that had no statewide candidates (which her campaign says qualifies as a statewide primary). The state party executive has the authority to waive this requirement, so she likely will be allowed to run regardless. Whether or not that counts as two statewide primaries, she has clearly been limited in her political activity thus far.

She is trailing Rep. Ralph Norman in the polls. The RCP polling average has him up by 0.5%, but Emerson's most recent poll (July 28-29) has Norman up by 3%. Norman's support increased in their poll from a week earlier, up from 16% to 22%, so his support may be solidifying. He also leads her in net favorability, +26% to +22%. And 28% of voters remain undecided. So far the race is close, but Norman has an edge, despite Trump's endorsement of Graham.

Electing a relative to fill a deceased Congressman's seat is risky. Sometimes the replacement relative turns out to be a good politician — such as Debbie Dingell, who replaced her late husband John Dingell. But often the replacement relative turns out to be a political neophyte and is forgotten after one term.

Since no candidate is close to a majority, Ralph Norman and Darline Graham will likely be the top two in the special election on August 11 and advance to the runoff on August 25. Norman holds a slight edge at this point to win the runoff and gain the Republican spot in the November general.

I'm skeptical that a disability advocate who has not made waves is truly a conservative. Darline has given hints that she is not as conservative as Lindsey. Her lack of specific policies indicates that she has not thought deeply about stances that require resoluteness — and most shallow conservatives who go to Washington quickly become RINOs. South Carolina Republicans would be well-advised to thank Darline for stepping in to fill Lindsey's legacy and then vote for a proven conservative.