BY JESSICA HOLDMAN - AUGUST 17, 2026 1:57 PM
President Donald Trump is expected to hold a rally in Myrtle Beach on Friday, the last day of early voting in the GOP runoff for U.S. Senate, according to a release Monday by the state Republican Party.
Trump endorsed Sen. Darline Graham as he encouraged her to jump into South Carolina’s first open U.S. Senate race in 22 years. She faces U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman in the Aug. 25 runoff to replace her late brother, Lindsey Graham, as the GOP’s Senate nominee for the next six-year term.
No details on the rally have been released. But the state GOP announced it’s postponing a Stump Stop event it’s co-hosting in Anderson due to Trump’s visit.
“With President Donald Trump scheduled to hold a rally in Myrtle Beach on behalf of one of the runoff candidates that same day, the Party is working to reschedule the Anderson event for a time when both candidates have the opportunity to participate,” the SCGOP statement read.
Neither the Graham campaign nor the state party immediately responded to messages left by the SC Daily Gazette. Norman’s campaign also didn’t immediately respond.
Graham was sworn in as South Carolina’s first female U.S. senator on July 14 after Gov. Henry McMaster appointed her to fulfill the remainder of her brother’s fourth term following his unexpected death three days earlier.
A rally in Myrtle Beach, the heart of the Grand Strand, could provide a dual purpose of encouraging supporters of U.S. Rep. Russell Fry to come back out to vote for Darline Graham, while reminding voters that Fry is still on the November ballot for re-election to the U.S. House. Fry sought the Senate seat after easily securing the GOP nomination for the 7th District without opposition.
Both Graham and Norman are trying to win over Fry’s supporters in the ruby red Grand Strand.
Fry endorsed Graham on Friday.
Out of nearly 336,000 votes cast in last week’s 10-candidate special primary, Graham received 33%, while Norman came in second with 25%, according to state Election Commission data. Neither carried a single county in the 7th District, which Fry has represented since 2022.
A native of Surfside Beach, Fry placed third with 20% of the vote. The eight counties he carried match the map of the 7th District, anchored by his fast-growing home county.
That’s where Fry did his best, by number of votes: In Horry County, he led with more than 42% of that county’s primary voters, receiving almost 14,000 votes there. Before winning the 7th Congressional District, Fry represented parts of Horry County in the state House for seven years.
Norman took 10 counties in the Upstate (including Laurens County) and Charlotte suburbs, including his home county of York. Graham took the lead on the 28 other counties across the state.
Only 11% of registered voters participated in the Aug. 11 special primary. Turnout for runoffs is typically even lower than a primary.
The winner of the runoff will face Democrat Annie Andrews in November.
Trump last held a rally in Horry County in February 2024 ahead of the state’s presidential primary, when he defeated former Gov. Nikki Haley.
JESSICA HOLDMAN
Jessica Holdman writes about the economy, workforce and higher education. Before joining the SC Daily Gazette, she was a business reporter for The Post and Courier.
SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
President Trump and Republicans Deliver for South Carolina Families
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Today (Aug. 21), President Donald J. Trump returns to South Carolina to celebrate the powerful results of America First leadership. Under President Trump and Republicans, South Carolina is thriving: the largest tax cuts for working families in a generation, the most secure border in history, plunging crime rates, unleashed American energy, and a surge of private investment creating jobs and opportunity across the Palmetto State.
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Historic Tax Relief for Working Families and Seniors
President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts put real money back into the pocket of South Carolina workers, families, and seniors.
- No Tax on Overtime: One in four South Carolina workers no longer pay federal income taxes on qualifying overtime pay.
- No Tax on Social Security: Approximately one million South Carolina seniors benefit from the new senior deduction.
- Bigger Refunds: South Carolina taxpayers saw average tax refunds reach $3,476.
- Rural Health Investments: South Carolina secured more than $200 million in first-year funding through the Rural Health Transformation Program.
- Protecting South Carolina’s Economy: The Working Families Tax Cuts safeguarded86,000 South Carolina jobs, $15 billion in state GDP, and $8 billion in workers’ wages.
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Safer Communities
President Trump’s law-and-order agenda is delivering safer streets across South Carolina as violent crime falls sharply.
- Statewide homicides dropped more than 18% in 2025 — and fell another 21% in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period the prior year.
- Statewide aggravated assaults fell over 12% in 2025 and 18% in the first half of 2026.
- Statewide rapes declined over 12% in 2025 and 23% in the first half of 2026.
- Statewide robberies dropped over 21% in 2025 and 24% in the first half of 2026.
- In Charleston, overall crime plunged 36% in 2025, with homicides, aggravated assaults, robberies, and sex offenses all well below the five-year average.
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Billions in New Private Investment
President Trump’s America First economic agenda — tax cuts, energy dominance, secure borders, and pro-growth policies — has ignited a private investment surge in South Carolina.
- Eaton announced a $340 million investment to expand U.S. production of critical transformers in Jonesville.
- NorthMark Strategies announced a $2.8 billion investment to build a state-of-the-art high-performance computing center in Spartanburg.
- TS Conductor announced a $134 million investment to open an advanced manufacturing facility in Hardeeville.
- Rolls-Royce announced a $75 million investment to expand its manufacturing facility in Aiken.
- Century Aluminum announced a $50 million investment to restore its Berkeley County plant to full production for the first time in a decade.
- Scout Motors announced a $300 million investment to build a Supplier Park at its Blythewood Production Center.
- Coastal Precast Systems announced a $9 million investment to establish operations in Laurens County.
- Georg Utz, Inc. announced a $40 million investment to build its first South Carolina manufacturing facility in Sumter County.
- Ferrara Candy Company announced a $675 million investment to establish its first South Carolina operation in Orangeburg County.
- Red Metals announced a $70 million investment to launch its first copper manufacturing operation in Charleston County.
- AmbioPharm announced a nearly $119 million investment to expand peptide manufacturing and development in Aiken County.
- Octapharma announced a $1.5 billion investment to build a state-of-the-art critical care manufacturing facility in Rock Hill.
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President Trump and Republicans are proving once again that America First means South Carolina First — delivering results for families, workers, seniors, and every community.
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