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by WILL FOLKS
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While one battle tied to South Carolina’s ongoing senatorial succession drama was raging in the Palmetto State’s court system, another was unfolding between two of the top contenders for the hotly contested U.S. Senate seat previously held by the late Lindsey Graham.
The antagonists? Seventh district congressman Russell Fry and Graham’s sister, interim U.S. senator Darline Graham Nordone. Both candidates are among the frontrunners for Graham’s spot on the November ballot – which will be decided this month in a special GOP primary election.
The drama kicked off on Tuesday afternoon (August 4, 2026) when Fry unloaded on Nordone – taking specific aim at her over an issue that has dogged her among conservative voters ever since she announced she was running for her late brother’s seat.
That issue? Abortion.
Nordone has been closely linked to the pro-choice movement given her recent support for former state senator Katrina Shealy, one of several so-called “sister senators” who lost their Republican primaries in 2024 for failing to toe the party line on the abortion issue.
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Nordone made two contributions to Shealy’s 2024 reelection bid – and is widely believed to have voted for Shealy in a Republican runoff election that June. Ironically, Nordone’s presumed vote for Shealy is what appears to have qualified her for the 2026 ballot under a hotly disputed S.C. Republican Party (SCGOP) candidate eligibility rule.
Had she not backed the pro-choice candidate, she wouldn’t have been eligible for the ballot under the SCGOP’s controversial (and selectively enforced) rule…
“The girl-math ‘reason’ why she was even certified to be on the GOP ballot for her brother’s Senate seat is because she went out of her way to vote for her pro-abortion friend, Katrina Shealy in her S.C. Senate seat runoff,” Palmetto pro-life advocate Laura Beth Kirsop noted.
In addition to her sparse participation in GOP primaries, Nordone does not appear to have voted in the 2016 or 2024 ‘First in the South’ presidential primary election. According to Fry’s campaign, ‘if Darline Graham won’t even stand up for the president at the ballot box, how can South Carolina trust her to stand for him in the United States Senate?”
“You cannot ask for someone’s vote when you haven’t bothered to cast your own,” Fry’s release added.
Fry also ripped Nordone for supporting the development of controversial data centers “regardless of what local communities want or need.”
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“While Congressman Fry stood firm that local communities deserve a voice in what gets built in their backyard, Darline Graham had no problem with a one size fits all approach that puts special interests ahead of South Carolina families,” Fry’s campaign claimed.
But it was the abortion issue – and Nordone’s proximity to Shealy – that drew the most aggressive criticism from Fry.
“Shealy is a pro-choice candidate whose position on life is fundamentally at odds with South Carolina Republican primary voters,” Fry’s campaign noted in its release.
Fry also pointed out that Shealy, who received serious consideration as a potential Democrat lieutenant gubernatorial selection, recently introduced Democrat gubernatorial nominee Jermaine Johnson a rally on the steps of the S.C. State House.
“Does Darline Graham share those values?” Fry’s campaign asked.
Nordone’s campaign fired back at the criticism, claiming she has co-sponsored “multiple pieces of pro-life legislation” since being installed as South Carolina’s junior U.S. senator on an interim basis.
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“One of my core convictions is my belief in protecting the sanctity of human life at every stage,” Nordone said.
Her campaign added that she believed “every innocent life deserves protection, no matter the jurisdiction” – and slammed Fry for allegedly publicly opposing a federal abortion ban.
As for Fry’s data center broadside, Nordone claimed she was merely supporting U.S. president Donald Trump – and that America could compete with China for data center superiority “without ignoring the legitimate concerns of South Carolina communities.”
“Both priorities can be achieved,” Nordone’s campaign noted, adding that “decisions about local development belong with the people who actually live there.”
The animus between these two candidates has been on display from the very beginning of this abbreviated race – and could stem from the fact Fry former was Trump’s first choice for this seat. Trump pivoted to Nordone, however, after learning Fry would need to resign his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in order to succeed Graham – potentially imperiling a narrow “Republican” majority in Washington, D.C.
In addition to Fry and Nordone, congressman Ralph Norman, former S.C. governor Mark Sanford and Upstate businessman Mark Lynch are campaigning for this seat. So are Walterboro, S.C. attorney Duke Buckner, former Myrtle Beach, S.C. mayor Mark Struthers McBride and a host of other lesser-known candidates.
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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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