Three of South Carolina's candidates for U.S. Senate pitched their vision for the position in an Oct. 11 debate, which is currently set to be the only debate among candidates. Although candidates touched on policy regarding healthcare and affordability — among other topics — voters spent a chunk of the night watching the Republican and Democratic options call each other out.
South Carolina will have a new elected U.S. Senator for the first time in about 15 years. And if one of the three leading women on stage wins the election, she will be the state's first woman elected to represent South Carolina in the Senate. The election has garnered national attention as the polling distance between the top two candidates appears closer than expected in the reliably red state.
Republican incumbent Darline Graham, who Gov. Henry McMaster appointed to the position after the death of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, weaved-in support of President Donald Trump and her family history into answers.
Democratic pediatrician Dr. Annie Andrews spent part of the night focusing on South Carolina families and the other part of the night preemptively planning for talking points she believed Graham would bring up.
Libertarian Kasie Whitener, who has a doctorate in organization and management, spent her time answering moderator questions and presenting herself as an option for South Carolinians unenthused with either of the major-party candidates.
Prior to the hourlong debate at the Columbia SCETV building, Graham and Andrews supporters exchanged cheers and waved signs. The energy seeped into the actual debate.
Here are some takeaways from Sunday night:
Budgets and battles
All three candidates sought to reduce the nation's debt, but the path to which the candidates wanted to get there differed.
Andrews cited the war in Iran as a main driving factor of rising prices throughout the nation and in South Carolina. She pressed Graham for her support of the war that has in-part resulted in higher fuel prices, and she said Graham had the power as a sitting senator to do something about the situation.
"My opponent is the only one on this stage who had the opportunity to vote to end the war, but three times in a row she voted to continue it, and several days after one of those votes she had the audacity to walk out onto this stage and admit that national security isn't really her thing," Andrews said referring to a previous comment Graham made at a debate during the primary cycle, although Graham's answer was in reference to China and Taiwan — not Iran.
Graham argued that nobody wanted the ongoing war, but it was a necessity for national security purposes; she said Iran could not have a nuclear weapon.
The pair also disagreed on the fiscal impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill, a spending bill passed by Republicans prior to Graham's time in Congress. Graham said Andrews' previous critiques of the bill had put into question her support of funding for rural hospitals and tax cuts for the middle class.
"I don't think that Congress should get paid until we balance the budget. So again, I am totally for a balance budget amendment. I think President Trump has done a great job cutting waste, fraud and abuse. I think there is more that we can do there," Graham said.
Andrews clarified that she supported tax slashes for the middle class and expanded funding for rural hospitals. But part of the bill included cuts to Medicaid, which Andrews said as a pediatrician was her main gripe. Graham argued that the changes were necessary.
"If she's talking about the One Big Beautiful Bill that requires able-bodied people to work or train for 20 hours a week to receive Medicaid, then yes, count me in," she said.
Graham also said Andrews' plan for "government run healthcare for all" would bankrupt the country. Andrews dismissed the notion of that alleged plan and said she wanted families to have affordable, public healthcare plans as an option. She did not call for universal healthcare like Democrats in other states' close contests. Throughout the night, Andrews appealed more to moderate and independent voters than any one side of the political spectrum.
In regard to the nation's policy and relationship with Israel, each candidate had a unique take.
Whitener respected the country as an ally but said it should defend itself. Graham said Israel was the United States' "strongest ally" in the Middle East and condemned Hamas. Andrews highlighted humanitarian concerns in the area and was the only candidate to mention Palestine or Palestinians.
"Israelis deserve a safe place to live and Palestinians also deserve to live in peace. What's happening in the region is devastating. It is a humanitarian crisis," Andrews said.
But the bulk of the questions began with sincere answers that divulged into battles of talking points.
Rebuttals, rebuttals and Whitener
As Graham and Andrews squabbled, Whitener stuck to answering questions from moderators. She said to reporters after the debate that she does not view herself as a spoiler in the race for either candidate. She had no plans of dropping out of the contest.
"So, if all these people out there who are thinking, 'You know, I'm tired of this. I want something new. I want something different. I believe in what Kasie's doing,' show up and pick me, we can win," she said.
Andrews and Graham gave reporters limited time following the debate compared to Whitener. Andrews walked into the media room about 30 minutes after the debate's close and answered questions for six minutes. Graham sent in spokesperson T.W. Arrighi to speak for her.
"Winners of debates don't usually come to the spin room," Arrighi said.
Graham and Andrews each claimed a victory on social media following the debate.
Early voting will run from Monday, Oct. 19, to Saturday, Oct. 31. Polls will open each day, except Sunday, Oct. 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The 2026 General Election is Nov. 3.
