South Carolina Governor Appoints Interim Senator to Fill Vacancy Until 2027 Election

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham Nordone on July 13 to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham. She will serve the remainder of the term, which ends January 3, 2027, and will be sworn in at 2:30 p.m.

ET on July 14. Nordone, commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind since 2019 and president of the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind since January, will become the state's first female senator. Lindsey Graham died on July 11 at age 71; his office said the preliminary cause was a rupture of his aorta due to hardening of the arteries.

Sen. " She also said, "To Lindsey, I miss you more than I can even put into words. But I’m going to do this. " Nordone attended the College of Charleston and earned a bachelor of science degree in sociology in 1989.

She is married, lives in Lexington, South Carolina, and has two daughters. After their mother died of Hodgkin lymphoma in 1976 and their father died of a heart attack 15 months later, Graham became her legal guardian when she was 13. A special Republican primary will be held next month to choose the GOP nominee for the November general election, which will also feature Democratic nominee Annie Andrews.

Candidates have one week starting July 21 to file. Republicans held a 53-47 Senate majority before Graham’s death. Graham had been seeking a fifth term after first winning election in 2002.