South Carolina Schedules Aug. 11 Special Republican Primary After Sen. Lindsey Graham's Death

South Carolina has reset part of its 2026 Senate election calendar, scheduling an Aug. 11 special Republican primary to choose a new GOP nominee for the Nov. 3 general-election ballot after Sen. Lindsey Graham died days after winning the party’s June primary. The vote is not to fill the state’s current Senate vacancy, which Gov. Henry McMaster has already filled on an interim basis.

The South Carolina State Election Commission announced July 13 that Republican candidates can file from noon July 21 until noon July 28 at the commission’s office in Columbia. Early voting for the special primary is set for Aug. 5-7 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If no candidate wins a majority on Aug. 11, a runoff will be held Aug. 25. The winner becomes the Republican nominee for the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.

The special primary became necessary because Graham, a Republican, died July 11 after already securing the GOP nomination in the party’s June 9 primary. Graham’s office said in a statement: “On the evening of Saturday, July 11, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham passed away from a brief and sudden illness. Senator Graham’s family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period.” Under South Carolina law, when a party nominee chosen through a primary dies, the ballot vacancy “must be filled in a special primary election,” according to S.C. Code Section 7-11-55 and the State Election Commission. The commission said, “This special filing period and special primary are being held pursuant to S.C. Code of Laws Section 7-11-55 after the death of the Republican Party nominee for U.S. Senate.”

Who can vote is a key detail. According to the State Election Commission, voters who cast ballots in the June Democratic primary cannot vote in the Aug. 11 special Republican primary. Those who voted in the June Republican primary can participate, as can voters who did not vote in either party’s June primary.

The special primary is separate from the appointment McMaster made to cover the remainder of Graham’s current term. On July 13, the governor appointed Darline Graham Nordone, Graham’s sister, to serve as interim U.S. senator. That appointment addresses the current vacancy in office. The August special primary, and the Nov. 3 general election that follows, will determine who wins the seat for the next term.

The opening is unusual in South Carolina politics because this Senate seat has changed hands so rarely. It is only the second time since 1956 that the seat has been open. Strom Thurmond held it until 2003, and Graham had held it since taking office in January of that year. The full Republican field will not be known until filing closes July 28, though Mark Lynch, Graham’s runner-up in the June GOP primary, has declared his intent to run.