Nine Certified for Aug. 11 Special Republican Primary for U.S. Senate; Three Ruled Ineligible

Nine Republicans will appear on the ballot Aug. 11 in the special primary to select the party’s nominee for the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, after the South Carolina Republican Party completed candidate certification Tuesday.

Twelve candidates filed with the State Election Commission before the noon deadline July 28, but the state party determined that three did not meet its qualifications for the ballot.

Those certified are U.S. Sen. Darline Graham Nordone of Pendleton, who was appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster on July 13 to serve the remainder of her late brother’s term; U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman of Rock Hill; U.S. Rep. Russell Fry of Surfside Beach; former Gov. Mark Sanford; Greenville businessman Mark Lynch; Walterboro attorney Duke Buckner; Mark McBride; Glenda Gail Parker; and Samuel Shepherd.

The three ruled ineligible are Danny Lee Ford II, Darius Mitchell and Clark Neilson. The state party said Ford and Mitchell did not vote in two of the last three statewide Republican primaries, and that Neilson had residency issues. Neilson’s filing paperwork listed a Charlotte, North Carolina, address.

Ford, a Pickens County farmer and the son of former Clemson head football coach Danny Ford, is familiar to Upstate voters from this year’s race for state agriculture commissioner. He finished second in the four way June 9 Republican primary for that office, trailing Cody Simpson by fewer than 4,000 votes out of more than 320,000 cast, and lost the June 23 runoff.

The eligibility standard at issue is new. Delegates to the state party’s June convention adopted a rule, effective July 1, requiring candidates seeking the Republican nomination to have voted in at least two of the past three statewide Republican primaries. Candidates who do not meet the standard may still reach the ballot by obtaining a waiver from party leadership before the certification deadline. Some Republicans have objected that the rule gives party officials too much control over ballot access.

The special primary is being held under state law because Graham had already won the June Republican primary and faced opposition in the general election. Graham, an Upstate native who was laid to rest this week following services in Washington, Columbia and Pickens County, died July 11.

Early voting runs Aug. 5 through Aug. 7, with the primary Aug. 11. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will meet in an Aug. 25 runoff, with early voting for that contest Aug. 19 through Aug. 21.

Because this is a special Republican primary, participation is limited. Voters who cast ballots in the June 9 Democratic primary are not eligible to vote Aug. 11. Voters who took part in the June Republican primary, or who did not vote at all, may participate. The voter registration deadline for the special primary was July 12.

The winner of the primary will advance to the Nov. 3 general election against Democrat Annie Andrews, Libertarian Kasie Whitener and Constitution Party candidate Mark Hackett.