By Michael Katz | Tuesday, June 9, 2026 at 10:14 PM EDT
Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’s strongest allies in Congress, easily secured victory in South Carolina’s Republican Senate primary on Tuesday night as he advanced to seek a fifth term.
Newsmax and Decision Desk HQ declared Graham the winner with 57.6% of the vote after 83% of ballots were counted. Businessman Mark Lynch trailed closely behind with 28.3%, followed by four other candidates.
Graham, chair of the Senate Budget Committee, received high-profile endorsements from President Trump, Sen. Tim Scott, Gov. Henry McMaster, and Reps. Russell Fry, William Timmons, and Joe Wilson.
In a statement on X, Graham thanked supporters: “Thank you to the big guy, God,” he wrote. “Thank you to the Republican primary voters for your confidence in me and rejecting garbage. I have the best team in politics.”
Graham also praised President Trump’s endorsement as “the gold standard in the Republican world.” He added, “To my South Carolina team, my dear friend Senator Tim Scott, Governor McMaster, Congressmen Fry, Wilson, Timmons, and so many others – thank you. To my dear sister and her family, I’m forever grateful for the way you stand up for your brother. On to victory in November.”
In the upcoming November general election, Graham will face Democratic candidate Annie Andrews, a pediatrician who previously lost South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District race in 2022 to Rep. Nancy Mace. Newsmax and Decision Desk HQ called Andrews the winner of the Democratic primary with 61.1% of the vote after approximately 81% of precincts reported, followed by Brandon Brown (30.6%) and Kyle Freeman (8.3%).
South Carolina Democrats have not won a U.S. Senate election since Fritz Hollings’ reelection in 1998.
