Election 2026: Sanford becomes 10th in Republican special primary

(The Center Square) – Former presidential candidate Mark Sanford, a four-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives, will try to win a South Carolina seat in the U.S. Senate.

Noon Tuesday is the filing deadline in the quest to be the Republican nomination on the ballot Nov. 3, taking the place of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham. He died July 11, two days after his 71st birthday, and would have been seeking a fifth term.

Sanford filed with the South Carolina Elections Commission on Monday, becoming the 10th candidate in the field. His presidential bid in 2019 was short-lived, lasting from a Sept. 8 announcement to a Nov. 12 suspension of the campaign that never restarted.

He had started a campaign for the 1st Congressional District seat but unofficially withdrew, though he still appeared on the ballot and was fourth behind Jenny Honeycutt and Mark Smith. Honeycutt defeated Smith in a runoff, seeking to fill the seat being vacated by Rep. Nancy Mace. She was unsuccessful in the gubernatorial primary.

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