South Carolina Republican Sen. Darline Graham has collected several key endorsements since announcing Monday she would run for the seat of her late brother, Lindsey Graham.

But the political newcomer, who entered the race for a full six-year term at the urging of President Donald Trump, now faces a potentially fractious GOP primary on a truncated timeline. 

Graham launched her campaign via a Fox News interview Monday night, a week after she was appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster as placeholder to fill the remainder of her brother’s term through early January. 

Her bid for a full term has already won the support of three members of Senate Republican leadership: Majority Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming, Conference Chair Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Policy Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia.

Yet even with Trump’s backing, Graham’s decision to run has not cleared the field as of Tuesday afternoon: Two Republican House members, Russell Fry and Ralph Norman, are running, as are businessman Mark Lynch, who took 29 percent in last month’s primary against Lindsey Graham, and attorney Duke Buckner.

Another prominent member of South Carolina’s congressional delegation, Rep. Nancy Mace, said she wouldn’t run and announced Tuesday that she was backing Norman.

Filing for the special primary election opened at noon Tuesday, and more contenders could join the field. The filing period ends July 28, the same day as Graham’s funeral in Washington. 

After that, the candidates will sprint to an Aug. 11 primary, with a runoff election between the top two finishers scheduled for Aug. 25 if no one receives a majority of the vote. The winner will face the Democratic nominee, pediatrician Annie Andrews, in November.

Competition ahead

Trump’s endorsement is still seen as a golden ticket in GOP primaries, even as polls show his overall job approval rating sliding in advance of the midterm elections.

But earlier this year, candidates backed by Trump in gubernatorial primaries in Iowa and Georgia fell short. In the South Carolina GOP race for governor, the president’s initial choice – Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette – lost a runoff to state Attorney General Alan Wilson. (Days before the runoff, Trump hedged his bets and endorsed both Evette and Wilson.)

On Tuesday, Wilson, the son of Rep. Joe Wilson, made a public plea for unity. 

“Today, and from this point forward, things are going to move quickly,’’ he said on social media. “The rhetoric will heat up, campaigns will take shape, and emotions will run high. We haven’t even buried Senator Graham yet, and already this process is underway. That makes it all the more important that we remember what matters most.”

At the Capitol on Tuesday, Norman said he welcomed the competition. 

“That’s democracy,” said the departing congressman, who finished third in last month’s gubernatorial primary. “Competition’s good at any level: business, grocery stores, you name it.’’ 

He also acknowledged that Trump’s endorsement would provide Graham with a major boost. 

“That’s why I asked for his endorsement. It helps,” said Norman, who has the backing of GOP Sens. Rick Scott of Florida and Mike Lee of Utah.  

One senator opting not to endorse so far is Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota. 

“I think my endorsement probably isn’t helpful to anyone that’s running in the primary right now,’’ he told reporters Tuesday. “The president’s endorsed [Graham]. … Ultimately, I think it’s going to be up to the voters of South Carolina.”

In her Fox News interview with host Sean Hannity, Darline Graham reflected on the enormity of her decision to seek a full term but said she felt an “inner peace.”

“It is a tremendous amount of pressure,’’ she said of Trump urging her to run. “’I’ve been praying a lot, talking to my family, but with the love of my family, with the support of [Graham’s] staff … I know I’m a hard worker. I learned that from Lindsey.”

A former member for the South Carolina Commission for the Blind who had never sought elective office before Monday, Graham is the first woman to represent South Carolina in the Senate, as well as the first sister to directly succeed her brother in Congress.

She said she aims to balance preserving her brother’s legacy with a desire to put her own stamp on the job. 

“I used to see him on the talk shows. I would watch him, and I’d be like, ‘Lindsey, are you just talking about national security all the time?’ … I understand that’s important. Protecting our borders, national security,” she said.

But she said she encouraged her brother to also talk about “what matters to the average person: the price of groceries, the price of gas, health care, insurance, those kind of things. … That’s what I’m worried about.”

‘Hard pass’

Some conservative critics say Darline Graham is a blank slate with limited experience who shouldn’t be handed an opportunity based on sympathy over her brother’s sudden death.

“Hard pass. Birthright senatorship is idiotic,” Sean Davis, the CEO of conservative news site The Federalist, wrote on social media.

Others have asserted that she may not even qualify for the primary: The South Carolina Republican Party recently adopted new rules about who can run as a Republican in the state. Candidates running on the Republican slate would have to have voted in at least two of the past three GOP primaries. 

Abby Zilch, a spokeswoman for Darline Graham’s campaign, said she meets the requirements, but FITS News, which covers South Carolina politics, reported that Dorchester County GOP Chairman CJ Westfall is requesting a review to determine if Graham is eligible to run.

Both Fry and Norman are pitching themselves as strong conservative advocates for Trump’s MAGA agenda. 

“We need a conservative fighter in the Senate who delivers real results. I will be your conservative MAGA candidate in the special primary Senate election this summer,’’ Fry said in a statement Monday. 

Norman, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, described himself as  “a fighter who will stand with President Trump and carry on Lindsey Graham’s legacy!” He specifically pledged to support a sweeping voter ID and elections overhaul bill, known as the SAVE Act, which is one of Trump’s biggest legislative priorities.

Norman, who was already on track to retire from the House, urged Fry on Monday to remain in the chamber, asserting that his decision to seek the Senate seat could jeopardize Speaker Mike Johnson’s precarious hold on the majority.

“I respect Russell Fry and I have enjoyed serving with him in the House, but the reality is, his candidacy could leave his seat vacant until May 18th,” Norman wrote on social media. “This would leave his constituents unrepresented, jeopardize President Trump’s agenda, and put the House at risk of being led by a Speaker Hakeem Jeffries.”