Mace First to Circle Graham's Senate Seat as Field Forms

Rep. Nancy Mace moved within days of Sen. Lindsey Graham's sudden death to signal interest in the open South Carolina seat, positioning herself at the front of what observers expect to be a crowded Republican primary.

Sen. Lindsey Graham died suddenly over the weekend, vacating his South Carolina Senate seat.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is the first named candidate to express public interest in the opening.
The seat is expected to draw a wide field of Republican hopefuls.
South Carolina's governor will appoint a temporary replacement pending a special election.
Mace currently represents South Carolina's 1st Congressional District in the House.

Sen. Lindsey Graham died suddenly over the weekend. By the time the announcement had finished its news cycle, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) had already surfaced as a candidate for the seat.

Mace, who represents South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District along the coastal low country, confirmed interest in the vacancy to Political Wire on July 12. She is the first on record to do so, though the field is not expected to stay small.

Under South Carolina law, the governor holds appointment power to fill a vacant Senate seat on an interim basis. A special election would follow. The timeline and mechanics have not yet been formally announced.

Graham, a four-term incumbent first elected in 2002, died without a named successor. The seat does not come up in the regular election cycle until 2026, when it would have been on the ballot regardless.

Mace ran for re-election to the House as recently as November 2024, winning her fourth term by a margin of roughly eight points. The filing does not specify what she intends to do with that seat in the interim.