Darline Graham

Darline Graham is the younger sister of Lindsey Graham and a native of Central, South Carolina. She was 13 when their parents died, and Lindsey Graham, then 22, became her caretaker and legal guardian.⁠[1][2]

She holds a B.A. in sociology from the College of Charleston and a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling, and is a Certified Public Manager.⁠[3][1]

Graham worked in public service for nearly 30 years, holding positions with Clemson University, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce and the South Carolina Department of Vocational Rehabilitation. Her career centered on vocational rehabilitation, the publicly funded programs that help people with disabilities overcome barriers to employment.⁠[1][4]

Since 2019 Graham has been commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind, which focuses on employment and training for people who are blind or have low vision. She also sits on the South Carolina State Workforce Development Board and is president-elect of the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind.⁠[4][1]

After South Carolina passed a 2022 law ending subminimum wages for people with disabilities, Graham helped unwind the remaining subminimum wage work and served on key committees; she attended the bill signing.⁠[4]

In July 2026 Lindsey Graham died in Washington at age 71. On July 13 Governor Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to fill the Senate vacancy under Section 7-19-20 of the South Carolina Code of Laws, to serve until January 3, 2027, when the new Congress convenes. She thereby became the first woman to represent South Carolina in the U.S. Senate. She had never run for or held elected office before.⁠[3][1][4]

On the day of her appointment she said, “Lindsey has always been there for me. And now I will be there for him.” She was sworn in on July 14.⁠[2]

On July 18 she released a letter to constituents writing that “it’s time for me to step up for South Carolina” and “Yet I am not Lindsey,” saying she had her own way of doing things while sharing her brother’s values; she wrote that her career had focused on helping South Carolinians with disabilities find employment and live independently.⁠[5]

Because Lindsey Graham had been the Republican nominee for the 2026 Senate election, the state party held a special primary to choose a replacement candidate. When filing closed on July 28, about a dozen Republicans had filed, including Darline Graham, U.S. Reps. Ralph Norman and Russell Fry, former Governor Mark Sanford and Mark Lynch.⁠[1][6]

In early August, discussing her first weeks in the Senate, Graham said, “I feel like I’ve been drinking out of a fire hose.” She pointed to passage of the Lindsey Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, named for her brother, said she backed the confirmation of Todd Blanche as attorney general, and supported the Save America Act. She said her goals for a full term included passing the Save America Act, lowering health care costs and improving affordability for families; on data centers, she said local communities should have a voice in siting while continued investment was essential.⁠[7]

In the August 11 special primary Graham received 109,604 votes (32.7%) and Norman 82,529 (24.6%), sending them to a runoff; Fry received 19.6%, Sanford 14.9% and Lynch 5.9%. Graham had President Donald Trump’s backing. “This seat belongs to the people of South Carolina and I will work hard to earn, earn your vote,” she said.⁠[8]

In the runoff Graham defeated Norman 193,396 votes (52.5%) to 175,327 (47.5%), and the Associated Press called the race for her. She said she was not running as a career politician and described the night as “bittersweet” without her brother by her side.⁠[9]

In the November election she faced the Democratic nominee, pediatrician Annie AndrewsAnnie AndrewsAnnie Andrews is an American pediatrician and Democratic politician, a former associate professor of pediatrics at the Medical University of South Carolina, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House in 2022 and was elected U.S. senator from South Carolina in 2026.Open the full entry. Graham said she wanted to lower the cost of living, starting with health care and grocery prices, and that she would be tougher on immigration than her brother.⁠[10]

In the general election on November 3, 2026, Graham lost to Annie Andrews; the Associated Press called the race on election night. Her Senate term runs until January 3, 2027.⁠[11][3]

In her concession speech she called the preceding period a “very difficult few months.”⁠[12]