Annie Andrews Flips South Carolina Senate Seat in Stunning Upset

Andrews’ victory was a stunning result in a deeply red state that has not elected a Democratic senator this century. In the weeks leading up to Election Day, polling indicated that the battle, which months ago was expected to be a win for Republicans, had become a toss-up.AP called the race after Andrews won 50.6% of the vote with 93% of the vote counted by Tuesday evening. Darline Graham, meanwhile, earned 47.2% of the vote.Political experts previously told TIME that the stakes of the South Carolina race changed significantly after former Sen. Lindsey Graham died in July. A month before his death, the longtime Republican Senator clinched the party’s nomination by double digits and was widely expected to win re-election in November.After his death, his sister, Darline Graham, was appointed by South Carolina’s governor to take over the rest of his term. President Donald Trump repeatedly urged her to run for a full term, and she later announced that she would run for the seat in this midterm election.Darline Graham speaks at a campaign event at the Beacon Drive-In in Spartanburg, S.C., on Nov. 2, 2026. Allison Joyce—Getty ImagesBut the field to replace Lindsey Graham as the GOP nominee was crowded, and no candidate in the special Republican primary in August earned enough of the vote. The two candidates who received the greatest portion of the vote—Darline Graham and Rep. Ralph Norman—advanced to a runoff election later in August, which Darline Graham won by less than 5 points. Experts told TIME that the primary divided the Republican party, with some of Norman’s supporters expressing their displeasure with Darline Graham and indicating that they may not vote for her in the general election. Norman himself said that, while he planned to vote for Darline Graham, he had no intention of joining her on the campaign trail.Darline Graham criticized over lack of political experienceDarline Graham, who had never held an elected office prior to taking over her late brother’s seat, has also been criticized for her minimal political background, particularly after what many described as a poor debate performance against Norman ahead of the runoff over the summer. When she was asked a question about Taiwan and the South China Sea, Darline Graham replied by saying “I’m not that informed on national security,” sparking backlash from members of her own party.Adding to the pressure on Darline Graham’s campaign is the fact that the political environment for Republicans across the country has been challenging in this election cycle. Typically, the party in the White House loses seats in midterms, and Republicans were also dealing with a historically unpopular President, with Trump’s approval rating falling to 30% last month, according to the Pew Research Center.Andrews, a pediatrician, secured the Democratic nomination in June, winning the primary by double digits. She secured bipartisan endorsements leading up to Election Day, including from two former governors in the state, one of whom is a Democrat and the other a Republican, who were featured in a campaign video for Andrews.Scott Huffmon, a professor of political science at Winthrop University and director of the Center for Public Opinion & Policy Research, previously told TIME that Andrews was running a strong campaign, saying that she “gins up excitement wherever she goes.”Political experts have also pointed to Andrews’ fundraising success, while Darline Graham’s campaign faced fundraising challenges. This was Andrews’ first Senate campaign, but she previously launched an unsuccessful bid for the House, when she ran against Rep. Nancy Mace in 2022.The Senator-elect also makes history as the first woman from South Carolina to be elected to the upper chamber. While Darline Graham is currently serving in the Senate, she wasn’t elected to the role, but rather was appointed by the state’s governor.