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Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., the sister of late Sen. Lindsey Graham, outlined her political priorities in an exclusive interview with “Hannity” on Monday as she announced she would run for a full Senate term in November.
“He’s worked so hard for so long. I can’t just let that die. I’ve got to step in and carry on his legacy,” she said during her first interview since Lindsey’s death.
“I know he cared about the people of South Carolina so deeply. He worked so hard for them. And I feel like I can do that, too. He taught me well,” she added.
SEN DARLINE GRAHAM REVEALS WHETHER SHE WILL RUN FOR A FULL-TERM DURING ‘HANNITY’ EXCLUSIVE
Darline Graham Nordone speaks during a press conference outside the governor’s South Carolina State House office in Columbia, S.C. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced that the remaining term of Sen. Lindsey Graham’s U.S. Senate seat will be filled by his sister, Darline Graham Nordone, following Graham’s death on July 11. Grant Baldwin/Getty Images (Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)
After being appointed by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster last week to serve out the rest of her late brother’s Senate term until January 2027, Graham announced Monday that she will run for a full, six-year term.
Graham, South Carolina’s first female U.S. Senator, told she feels an “inner peace” about succeeding her brother in representing The Palmetto State.
“It is a tremendous amount of pressure,” she said.
“I feel like I can do it. I feel an inner peace about it.”
Graham said that unlike Lindsey, who was passionate about ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict, she plans to focus primarily on domestic issues rather than foreign policy and place greater emphasis on day-to-day concerns of South Carolinians.
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“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?’,” she explained. “And I understand that’s important. Protecting our borders, national security, absolutely.”
Former Sen. Lindsey Graham, left, pictured alongside his sister, Darline Graham Nordone, right. ( )
“I said, ‘But talk about also 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.”
Lindsey Graham died suddenly on July 11 at age 71. His cause of death was later identified as an aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
“It’s been tough, extremely tough,” Darline Graham told host Sean Hannity.
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“He was everything, he was my rock. He was my brother, my mother, and my father,” she added.
Since 2019, Graham has served as a commissioner for South Carolina’s Commission for the Blind, overseeing a $90 million budget. The organization helps people who are blind or visually impaired people find employment.
“It was a passion of mine, but I have a servant’s heart,” she said. “You have to have a servant’s heart for a job like that.”
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