Senator Lindsey Graham is running for a fifth term, though his approval numbers pale in comparison to other Republicans lawmakers from South Carolina, according to recent polling.
Newsweek reached out to Graham’s campaign via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Graham has been one of the most consistent GOP faces in the Senate and remains a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump and his agenda.
South Carolina has typically supported Republicans in federal elections and keeping Graham’s seat is vital as 33 of 100 Senate seats are being contested on November 3, 2026. Of those, 20 are currently held by Republicans.
What To Know
A Winthrop University poll conducted in late May shows Graham’s approval ratings trailing Republican figures such as Trump (45 percent), South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster (42 percent) and Senator Tim Scott (41 percent). Graham’s rating is 34 percent.
About 40 percent of respondents disapprove with how Graham is handing his duties, compared to 34 percent who approve and 25 percent who said they weren’t sure.
On the flip side, for the other U.S. senator from the state, Scott has 41 percent approval while 31 percent are not sure and 27 percent disapprove.
About 1,211 general population South Carolinians were surveyed from May 23-31, with a margin of error of 2.82 percent and a 95 percent confidence level in weighted data.
Scott Huffmon, director of the Winthrop Poll, told Newsweek via phone on Thursday it’s important to note that the survey includes the general population and not just likely voters.
“[Graham’s] certainly more ripe [for a challenge] than any of the others, say, Tim Scott would be,” Huffmon said. “However, he’s got a massive war chest and he knows when to hoist his sails and get into the prevailing winds so that he prevails in a primary. He’s done it before, even when he was less popular than other statewide Republicans. He’s going to be be looking to do it again.”
Part of that will depend on statewide and national issues mostly out of Graham’s control, notably tariffs, Huffmon said. But even on that divisive issue, he said Graham is “an expert at reading the landscape.”
Graham won his last Senate race in 2020 by 10 points against Democrat Jaime Harrison.
The poll was taken as a new Democratic challenger, Annie Andrews, entered the 2026 Senate race. Andrews, a doctor, ran in 2022 against South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace and lost by 14 percentage points.
But whether it’s ultimately Andrews or another Democrat challenging Graham or another Republican, it’s an uphill battle and would require “a broad collapse” either by Trump or the party as a whole.
“To defeat Graham statewide, a Democrat would have to thread quite a few needles with no margin of error,” Hoffmon said. “There would almost certainly need to be some type of catastrophe or crash in support for President Trump and Republicans in general.
“There would have to be a surge in turnout among Democrats. Obviously, we have a significant African American population. They’re simply outvoted. So, all white Democrats, all Black Democrats would have to be at the polls. Republicans would have to be sort of more disengaged from an election and turn out in lower numbers.”
What People Are Saying
Annie Andrews told the Associated Press last month about Graham: “He’s changed his position on nearly every issue over that time and that’s because, in my view, he doesn’t stand for anything or believe in anything other than what it takes to get reelected.”
What Happens Next
About 46 percent of South Carolinians think things in the United States are on the wrong track, per the poll, falling strongly along partisan lines. About 72 percent of Republicans believe it’s headed in the right direction while 77 percent of Democrats say the opposite.
About the same number of South Carolinians, 45 percent, said their state is headed in the right direction, including 71 percent of Republicans, while 56 percent of Democrats saying the opposite.
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