Ralph Norman and Russell Fry Defy Trump Endorsement, Enter South Carolina Senate Race

Since Lindsey Graham died July 11 of an aortic dissection at age 71, Trump has spent the past week and a half trying to clear the field for his sister. That effort is not working.

Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., announced his campaign Saturday. Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., jumped in days later, according to Fox News. Businessman Mark Lynch is also running. All three are competing for a nomination Trump has already tried to hand to someone else.

Trump asked Darline Graham, 62, to run for the seat in a Truth Social post Friday, calling his backing a "complete and total endorsement" and writing "RUN, DARLINE, RUN!" She was sworn in the previous Tuesday to fill the seat on an interim basis, appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster at Trump's direction, according to The Guardian. It's the first time a sibling has replaced a senator who died in office, and she's the first woman to represent South Carolina in the Senate.

As of Friday night, Darline Graham herself hadn't said whether she's actually running, according to Newsweek. Neither had Norman, at that point. Trump is out there backing someone to run who hasn't committed, while other Republicans aren't waiting around to find out.

Two sitting senators broke with Trump

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, endorsed Norman on Friday, before Norman had even made his campaign official. Scott called Norman "a conservative fighter who will stand with @POTUS," citing his votes for the SAVE America Act. Lee said South Carolina needs "a strong fiscal conservative who understands how important it is that we pass President Donald J. Trump's agenda."

Both senators are framing their pick as more loyal to Trump's agenda than Trump's own chosen candidate. In a party where the Trump endorsement is normally treated as decisive, this represents a notable split.

Norman told CNN he'd tried to get Trump's blessing first. "I wanted his blessing to run and get his support. He decided to go with Darline, who's a nice person, and he decided to go with her. And so I respect that," Norman said. "But it doesn't deter my plans. I'm in this to win."

Fry was Trump's other apparent favorite

Fry's entry matters for Trump's operation because, according to Fox News, Trump had praised Fry as someone to watch just last week, and Fry had reportedly been in touch with White House staff about a possible run. A Trump endorsement for Fry seemed likely before Trump instead threw his support behind Darline Graham.

A source close to Fry told Fox News Digital that Fry "has accomplished more than all the potential candidates combined," pointing to three bills passed in his first four years in Congress, and framed the race as "about giving voters a choice and not a coronation."

Fry isn't running against Trump. His campaign announcement leaned hard into Graham's own alliance with Trump: "Of the many things Lindsey Graham believed in, standing with President Trump and advancing the Republican agenda were among his defining principles. There is no replacing him, but I believe the best way to honor his legacy is to fight alongside the president just as steadfastly as he did."

Norman struck a similar note in his own launch, writing on X that he's "running to represent the people of South Carolina in the US Senate because we need a fighter who will stand with President Trump and carry on Lindsey Graham's legacy." He told Fox host Kayleigh McEnany he'd push to eliminate the Senate filibuster to pass Trump's SAVE America Act, a restrictive voting bill the president has called his top legislative priority.

Voters want a choice

South Carolina-based Republican consultant Dave Wilson told Fox News Digital that "South Carolina voters want to have a choice and not be told who they need to be voting for." Multiple sitting congressmen and two U.S. senators are betting that even in Trump's own party, an endorsement isn't an ironclad guarantee, especially when the endorsed candidate hasn't committed to running.

The special GOP primary is set for Tuesday, August 11, with a runoff scheduled for August 25 if no candidate clears a majority. The winner faces Democrat Annie Andrews in November. Graham's memorial service is scheduled for July 28 in Washington, with additional services in South Carolina on July 29.

Darline Graham is set to give her first interview since her brother's death and her appointment to Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity, according to Eagle Country 99.3's aggregation of Fox reporting. Whether she uses that platform to announce a campaign, or to step aside and let Trump's endorsement expire on an empty seat, remains the open question hanging over this primary.