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Donald Trump clinched a crucial political victory on Tuesday as Darline Graham, the sister of late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, won her Senate primary contest following the president’s full-throated endorsement.
Graham, a political novice who was appointed to replace her brother in South Carolina after his sudden death last month, beat Ralph Norman, a conservative Republican member of Congress who has at times criticised the president and the party’s leadership.
Graham won 52.4 per cent of the vote while Norman recorded 47.6 per cent, according to the Associated Press.
Her victory is a sign that Trump retains his hold on right-leaning voters ahead of the November midterm elections as he tries to retain control of Congress during his final two years in office.
Trump was vigorous in his support for Graham in recent weeks, holding a high-profile rally in Myrtle Beach, along the southern state’s coast, and spending more than $800,000 from his main fundraising group, Maga Inc, to prop up her campaign.
Graham’s candidacy had been dogged by accusations that she was unprepared for the role, concerns which multiplied after she said in a debate that she was “not that informed on national security” in response to a question about Taiwan and the South China Sea.
Her comment not only exposed a critical gap in her knowledge but was also a striking contrast with her late brother, a prominent Republican hawk who played a big role in shaping US foreign and military policy.
Graham attempted to quell the furore surrounding her comments by saying she was not a “career politician”.
Trump has had mixed results in backing his preferred candidates in Republican primary races across the country as he struggles with low approval ratings, particularly on the economy.
While the president’s picks successfully unseated intraparty foes in prominent Senate contests in Texas and Louisiana earlier this year, his endorsement failed to help his preferred candidates in several governors’ races, including in Iowa and Wyoming, as well as several House contests in Florida and Tennessee.
Trump has been under pressure to deploy more of the $400mn war chest assembled by Maga Inc ahead of the midterm elections. The $827,000 expenditure for Graham disclosed by the group was its first big spending move of the midterms campaign.
