Rep. Ralph Norman Says He Won't Help Darline Graham in the Final Week and Accuses Trump of Trying to 'Force' Her on South Carolina Voters
Norman, who lost the GOP runoff to Graham, says he will not campaign with her no matter who asks. Fellow Republicans are pressing him to join in, and Cook now rates the race Lean Republican.
A Republican feud is shadowing the South Carolina Senate race a week before Election Day, Fox News reports.
The refusal. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., lost the GOP runoff to Sen. Darline Graham, who was appointed to the seat after the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham. Norman told Fox News Digital on Tuesday he has no plans to help her. He said voters "are not buying the argument that everyone has to 'settle' for a candidate that has been propped up by special interest groups and a Republican president spending millions of dollars spreading false narratives." He said the general election "is about attempts to 'force' a candidate on the voters of S.C." and ended his message with "Elections have consequences." Norman told Fox her campaign manager had asked his chief of staff whether he would campaign with her and that he declined.
The pressure. Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., who also lost a bid for the nomination, told reporters this week that "as somebody who carried the conservative banner as long as he has, he should step into the arena," according to Politico as cited by Fox. A Republican National Committee spokeswoman told Fox that Republicans "are unified on beating Annie Andrews," the Democratic nominee.
The race. Fox says Graham is running a closer-than-expected race. The Cook Political Report moved the contest from "Likely Republican" to "Lean Republican" last week. The Senate Leadership Fund, which is aligned with Majority Leader John Thune, pledged $5 million in ads in the state earlier this month. Trump held a rally in Clemson last week.
More defections. Fox reports that two former governors, Republican David Beasley and Democrat Jim Hodges, are reportedly backing Andrews. Norman's son Warren wrote in an op-ed for FITS News that he will not vote for Graham and is "leaning" toward Andrews, which he called "the first time in my life I've voted for a Democrat in a partisan election." Ralph Norman previously said he would vote for Graham, though his family would not.
The White House. Asked for comment, the White House pointed Fox to Trump's remarks at the Clemson rally: "You must vote for Darline and Republicans, and just, you're going to be happy." Fox says it asked Graham's campaign for comment as well.
Note for readers: Norman's quotes come from a text message to Fox. Fox did not report a response from Graham's campaign.