The early voting period in South Carolina’s Republican primary runoff narrowly outpaced the primary ahead of Tuesday’s contest between Sen. Darline Graham Nordone and Rep. Ralph Norman.
Data from the South Carolina Election Commission showed marginally higher participation with 63,712 votes during last week’s early voting period, compared to 61,775. On Aug. 11, the special primary select a Republican nominee following the death of the late Lindsey Graham saw a total of 335,693 votes — just over 11 percent of eligible votes cast.
County-level results show that the largest drops in early voting participation occurred in Florence, Georgetown, and Horry counties — those who turned out for Rep. Russell Fry in the Aug. 11 primary. Horry, home to Myrtle Beach, saw President Donald Trump rally for Graham Nordone on Friday to an effort to boost Election Day turnout.
Trump, who endorsed Graham Nordone for the seat, said at the rally, “We have to get Darline and other people elected,” at the city’s convention center to a jam-packed crowd.
“They’re only fighting Darline because they want me to lose, which isn’t fair, but I’m doing this to honor Lindsey,” Trump said. “I’m doing this to honor Lindsey.”
Ahead of the Friday night event, Graham Nordone was endorsed by Fry and the state’s governor, Henry McMaster.
“Since July, @DarlineGrahamSC has stepped up and immediately begun working to serve the people of South Carolina. Throughout her time in the U.S. Senate, she has stood for the values that South Carolinians live by, continued Lindsey Graham’s work, and stood firmly with President Trump to advance his America First agenda. I am proud to give my full endorsement to Darline Graham,” he wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Norman has worked the Upstate area hard in the two-week sprint, with both Greenville and Spartanburg counties slightly overperforming their numbers. Norman won both counties on Aug. 11.
He has leaned into his record in both the South Carolina legislature and U.S. House of Representatives to tell voters he has the record to back up his conservative stances.
In an exclusive interview with Breitbart News, Norman said, “We’re going to fight and we’re going to win this race because I’m the only proven candidate that has got credentials, and my record is my resume.”
Over the weekend, both camps have put out long lists of endorsements for voters to consider.
Graham Nordone is endorsed by President Trump, the state’s other Senator, Tim Scott, McMaster, Fry, 1st District nominee Jenny Costa Honeycutt, and Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette.
Norman unveiled endorsements from Senators Mike Lee and Rick Scott, former Sen. Jim DeMint, Rep. Nancy Mace, former U.N. Ambassador and Gov. Nikki Haley, former Gov. Mark Sanford, and former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. in the Palmetto State on Tuesday.
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