South Carolina polling has Andrews and Graham neck-and-neck in final sprint to Election Day

Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) is locked in a close contest with Democrat nominee Annie Andrews in South Carolina’s Senate race, according to a new poll that points to vulnerabilities for Graham as the midterm elections approach.Graham, the sister of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, was appointed to the Senate in July after her brother’s sudden death. She later decided to run for a full term at the urging of President Donald Trump, winning a bitter primary against Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC).Graham led Andrews by less than 1 percentage point, according to a New York Times poll conducted last week among likely voters. Andrews’s support is driven largely by enthusiasm for her candidacy, with voters citing her policies and personal character as leading reasons for backing her, the poll found. Graham’s supporters, meanwhile, were more likely to say they supported her because of their affiliation with the Republican Party.Andrews also holds an advantage among independent voters, with 57% supporting her compared with 37% for Graham. She is also drawing 7% of Republican voters, according to the poll.Voters gave Andrews an edge on several issues. A majority said she would do a better job handling the economy, and she held a narrow advantage on the cost of living. On foreign wars, Andrews led Graham 46% to 44%. Asked which candidate would do what is best for ordinary South Carolinians, 49% chose Andrews, compared with 46% who chose Graham.Graham, however, has a substantial advantage in name recognition. About one-quarter of voters said they had not heard of Andrews or could not offer an opinion of her, a much larger share than those who said the same about Graham.Graham’s late brother was a prominent four-term senator who maintained a close relationship with Trump, despite sometimes difficult relations with South Carolina’s MAGA voters, some of whom questioned his hawkish positions on foreign policy and immigration.The new senator is a first-time candidate who had never held elected office before her appointment. During an August primary debate, Graham admitted, “I’m not that informed on national security,” a remark that drew attention to her limited political experience.Voters expressed concerns about her qualifications in the poll. Fifty-one percent said Graham did not have the “right experience to be an effective senator,” including 18% of Republicans. By comparison, 54% said Andrews had the right experience, including 22% of Republicans.Trump has been relying on his loyal supporters to turn out for Republicans in the midterm elections, especially after he carried the state by nearly 18 percentage points in 2024. He rallied in South Carolina last week and is scheduled to return on Thursday.Despite the hopeful poll, the race remains challenging for Democrats. They have not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1998. The Cook Political Report rates the contest as “Lean Republican,” even as Democrats pump money into supporting Andrews.2026 MIDTERM ELECTIONS LIVE UPDATES: LATEST NEWS, RESULTS AND ANALYSISMeanwhile, the RealClearPolitics polling average, which incorporates the latest New York Times poll, shows Graham at 47% and Andrews at 44.6% over the period from Sept. 28 to Oct. 26.The New York Times interviewed 707 likely voters between Oct. 19 and 26, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9% to 4.3%.