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by WILL FOLKS
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Less than 24 hours after receiving the endorsement of his former top rival in the race to unseat fiscally liberal warmonger Lindsey Graham, South Carolina businessman and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mark Lynch was hit with a blast from his past.
Specifically, word began leaking that the Spartanburg, S.C. appliance store magnate had pleaded guilty in December 1984 to a felony drug charge.
According to public records obtained by FITSNews, Lynch was indeed arrested on August 23, 1984 in Greenville County and hit with a felony cocaine charge. Indicted by a grand jury three months later on a possession and distribution rap, he pleaded guilty on December 4, 1984 and was given a ten-year suspended sentence and $5,000 fine.
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Several other charges faced by Lynch in February 1986 – including citations for hit and run and driving under suspension – were dismissed by prosecutors.
Lynch addressed the felony plea on Wednesday afternoon (April 15, 2026) on 98.9 WORD with radio host Bill Frady.
“I tell the story all over the state,” Lynch said during his appearance on Frady’s show. “Forty-two years ago in the summer of 1984 I got arrested for a cocaine trafficking charge – a felony.”
“I was at a bad time in my life,” Lynch said. “I was hanging out with the wrong people.”
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Bill Frady Show https://t.co/CJTX7R1KJl
— 98.9 WORD (@989word) April 15, 2026
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According to the 67-year-old executive – who was 24 at the time of the arrest – he took responsibility for his actions.
“I pled guilty because I was caught,” Lynch said. “I knew what happened.”
Lynch indicated his brush with the law – and subsequent recovery from drug addiction – ultimately benefited him and his business, resulting in him meeting his wife and many of his future employees.
“I met my wife in recovery,” he told WORD. “Fifteen percent of our staff came through recovery. We discipled them. God used our pain for his greatest gain.”
Initial reaction to the revelation from Palmetto politicos seemed to bode well for the founder of the “Dump Lindsey” movement.
“Man, a 1984 felony plea deal on coke was probably some residue on a Van Halen cassette,” former South Carolina gubernatorial chief of staff Scott English wrote on X. “The Shire was tough on drugs in the 80s.”
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RELATED | REPUBLICANS MUST OUST WARMONGER GRAHAM
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“I personally think it’s awesome how Lynch was tearing into Snow White in the 80’s,” independent journalist Josh Bazzle added in a post on the platform.
Needless to say, curiously timed leaks about a 42-year-old drug charge have zero bearing on our view of this race, either. As FITSNews previously editorialized, Graham is a clear and present danger not only to the taxpayers and citizens of South Carolina – but to the entirety of western civilization as we know it.
“This election… is about putting an end to three decades of bloodthirsty tyranny and multi-trillion dollar betrayals,” I noted last month, referring to Graham as a “definitional spawn from the fecundity of the Washington, D.C. swamp.”
“It boils down to this,” I added. “Are we actually going to put America first for a change? Or are we going to continue letting foreign nations, the military-industrial complex and their political puppets keep pushing our Republic off a cliff?”
We know the answer to that question as far as Graham is concerned…
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Until last week, Lynch was locked in a ferocious undercard battle with Paul Dans, a veteran corporate litigator and author of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, for second place in this race. On Friday (April 10, 2026), however, Dans abruptly dropped out of the race – and earlier this week he endorsed Lynch’s candidacy.
“I was endorsed by Tucker and had the base behind me, but Mark Lynch has the resources,” Dans said. “This is all about the money at this stage and Lindsey is extremely unpopular. I’m going to do everything in my power to get Mark across the finish line and get Lindsey Graham into retirement.”
“Lindsey’s betrayed South Carolina,” Lynch told me during an interview last fall. “He’s betraying America, and he’s stabbing Trump in the back every chance he gets. He’s a Never Trumper, and something’s got to be done about it.”
Clearly Graham backers believe something’s also got to be done about Lynch… who is on the verge of consolidating the anti-Graham vote in the Palmetto State.
Partisan primary elections in South Carolina are scheduled for June 9, 2026. In the event no candidate were to receive a majority of the ballots cast, a head-to-head runoff election between the top two vote-getters would be held two weeks later (on June 23, 2026).
Keep it tuned to FITSNews as we keep track of all the major developments in this race…
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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20 comments
If Lindsey were truly going against Trump as noted at the end of the article, it might be a good thing. As we all know by now or should know, Lindsey and Trump seemingly are pleasuring each other at every opportunity with the prospect of invading or otherwise making war on multiple countries, to include Cuba. This madness needs to stop and each should wipe their jizz off of the other’s mouth. They are disgusting.
You are a big fan of MS-NOW, I see.
1980 something. Don’t care. Let’s send Graham home.
Graham has disappointed us time and time again! I listened to Lynch explain his side on the radio. He’s not been a repeat offender by any means. I stand with Mark Lynch! Graham leaked this past history (which Lynch hasn’t tried to hide) to hurt Mark Lynch. I wonder what we’d find if we followed Lindsey’s every move!
If he has Been Clean since 1986, What’s the Big Deal?
How do you know he’s been clean.
How long have you been clean?
Republicans are a clear and present danger not only to the taxpayers and citizens of South Carolina – but to the entirety of western civilization as we know it. There fixed it for you. This guy will vote exactly the same way as Lindsay on everything. Namely, however Trump tells him to vote.
If you believe This election… is about putting an end to three decades of bloodthirsty tyranny and multi-trillion dollar betrayals,,” If you want someone who is will not just become a definitional spawn from the fecundity of the Washington, D.C. swamp. If you want to put America first for a change. If you want to stop letting foreign nations, the military-industrial complex and their political puppets keep pushing our Republic off a cliff. You have only one choice, you must TAKE POWER FROM REPUBLICANS.
Because nothing will change. Trump is the rotten apple in the barrel. Trump is the source of the corruption. Trump is spending a billion dollars a day paying money to the military industrial complex, and Don, Jr. and Eric just became defense contractors sucking down their share of that money. The Saudi Princes and Israel wanted this war with Iran and the President’s son-in-law are on their payroll. The Trump family is doing everything Republicans accused the Biden family of times 10,000; and not one investigation.
Why have you not asked Lynch what he will do to end, Trumps war. Why have you not asked him how he plans to save Social Security and Medicare? Why have you not asked him how he plans to fight Trump’s desire to increase the defense budget and pay for it by eliminating Medicare and Medicaid and other programs needed by average Americans, to thrive The answer is because he will do nothing. Trump tells Lindsay what to do, and if elected he will tell Lynch what to do. Nothing changes. TAKE POWER FROM REPUBLICANS!!
Always a shame when TDS takes over a person’s life.
Funny how it is always TDS, never the fact that Trumpstein has fucked something up compleletely. Just TDS.
Yeah Trump Deity Syndrome on the part of Trumptards who make excuses for his every betrayal and every failure. Or maybe Trump Disappointment Syndrome for those who see things as they really are.
It’s not TDS to point out that Trump has added ten trillion dollars to the federal deficit to date, and the number is going up every day; all while Republicans had control of the House, the Senate. Its not TDS to point out that the money we are borrowing, is largely the result of tax cuts for billionaires. It is not TDS to point out that Trump is proposing a 1.5 trillion dollar defense budget, while saying we cannot afford Medicare, Medicaid, and child care for working families. It is not TDS to point out that Trump has not done one thing to shore up Social Security, or to make life more affordable for average Americans, while the billionaires have seen their income and share of the wealth in this country soar. It is not TDS to point out since the beginning of his second term the Trump family has seen their wealth more then double as they cut deals with foreign governments, middle eastern princes and defense contractors. It is not TDS to point out that we are spending a billion dollars to refurbish a plane for Trump to use after he is not longer President. It is not TDS to point out we are spending several million dollars a month for Trump to play golf. I could go on but I just realize I am arguing with a cult member.
Thank you, Frank! Well said!
I find myself agreeing with everything you have to say except for the tax cuts for billionaires part – not that he is not giving them but that it has any impact whatsoever on the magnitude of our financial problem. You could take 100% of all billionaire income and it would not make a shred of difference as to the size of our debt- it wouldn’t even cover the interest on it. The argument about taxing billionaires has long since sailed into the sunset. Only massive, massive spending cuts are going to turn the ship around – and we as an electorate simply don’t have the stomach for it.
It would be refreshing to have a Republican candidate for office in SC, be it the US Senate, the Governor’s office, or the US Congress, who doesn’t feel the need to defend and kiss Donald Trump’s ass every chance they get.
Where do we find these guys? First this very flawed candidate and then a supporter who says “oh it was just residue…”. He pled guilty to distribution. Clueless and even more clueless.
Is Ms Lindsey the answer? Until you come up with someone better than Lynch and the “Democrat Dwarves”, he’s gonna win.
Colonel, what are you looking for in an opponent for Lindsey? Or do you just like Lindsey and want to keep hm? Do you want someone as Trumpy as Lindsey who is not Lindsey or more Trumpy than Lindsay? I can assume its not less Trumpy
I try hard, but I just can’t figure out what Lindsey supporters like about him, anymore than I can figure out what Will and his other detractors don’t like about him. Will lists things he says he does not like, but then supports a person who politically is a Lindsey double and whose only criticism of Lindsey seems to be that his total submission to Donald Trump is not submission enough. Does anyone believe there is a Republican in South Carolina who will vote differently on anything than Lindsay would vote? Of course not.
As for your Democrat Dwarves, why don’t you just say you are a Republican and will not vote for a Democrat. Democrats want government to focus on better, lower cost health care, ending Citizens United which has brought billions in dark money into politics, securing Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid; defending democracy, shoring up our relationship with our traditional European and Asian allies, reducing the cost of educating our children, and making life more affordable for middle class Americans. I really don’t know what Republicans stand for, other than tax cuts for the rich, endless money for the military industrial complex, and kissing Trumps ass on demand. with a little neo-fascist White Christian Nationalism thrown in (though I don’t think they have a clue what being a Christian means).
Please give some examples of how “word began leaking”. It would be helpful to know who was talking about something Lynch says he has been outspoken about. Who was “leaking”? Surely not someone from our senior Senator’s camp?
Thomas Ravenel sure got off easy for all the coke he was caught handling. SLED even tipped off his Daddy the Congressman that the Feds were spying on his son and his powerful lawyer friends
Who wasn’t doing coke in 1984…
Felony drug charge. Y’all’s definition of conservative is interesting. What is it exactly? Signed, a silver-haired heterosexual mother of 2 children by the same man to whom I’ve been married for 27 years who gets called “radical leftist” all the time. Oh, and not one felony drug charge.