CHARLESTON, S.C. — Darline Graham Nordone has never held political office, but she has spent decades standing beside her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, through speeches, campaign appearances, and even television ads.
Now, following South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s decision to appoint her to fill the Senate seat her brother left vacant when he died over the weekend, Nordone is heading to Washington to serve out the remaining months of his term through January.
A special primary scheduled for next month will determine which Republican candidate advances to face Democrat Annie Andrews in the general election in November.
The story of how these two siblings came to be so deeply connected begins with tragedy. Their mother passed away in 1976 after a battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Just fifteen months later, a then-13-year-old Darline discovered her father after he died of a heart attack in his sleep.
At the time, Lindsey Graham was a young man just starting law school at the University of South Carolina. Faced with the loss of both parents, he redirected his focus toward making sure his sister was taken care of, making regular trips from Columbia to Seneca, where relatives were looking after her, and eventually becoming her legal guardian.
“I can remember the day my father passed away, standing in the living room of that house, absolutely scared to death,” Nordone told NPR in 2015. “Lindsey wrapped his arms around me and promised me he would always be there for me and always take care of me.”
After Graham became a military lawyer in the Air Force, he went a step further and formally adopted his sister so she could receive his military benefits. Graham never married or had children of his own, and during his 2016 presidential run, he once joked that his sister could be part of a “rotating” group of women serving as White House hostess in the role of first lady.
Their close relationship was on full display in March of this year when Nordone stood beside her brother as he filed his candidacy paperwork for re-election, surrounded by her children and grandchildren.
“What have I learned in this life I’ve led? I take nothing for granted. I count every blessing, every day,” Graham said at that event, reflecting on the journey he and his sister had shared. “I understand what a blessing my life has been and the only way I can pay you back for the blessings I’ve received is to be the most thoughtful, relevant, aggressive senator.”
Nordone went on to marry, raise children, and become a grandmother. She has also worked with people with disabilities. Speaking to C-SPAN in 2015, Graham described his sister’s success as “the highlight of it, by far” when reflecting on his own life.
Bob McAlister, a former campaign consultant to Graham, said the hardships the siblings endured growing up shaped who Graham was at his core.
“He grew up with nothing,” McAlister said. “The back of the bar where he and his sister grew up was always kind of top of mind to him. … And I think the way he and Darline grew up just had an indelible impact on him, and for some reason, it gave him the drive that he had to do what he did.”
McAlister added: “A lot of people have different ideas about Lindsey from what they’ve seen on TV and all that, but everything about him can be traced back to his boyhood, the way he grew up, the way he took care of his sister.”
Nordone appeared in a 2014 campaign ad as Graham sought a third Senate term, speaking to the promise he made her after their parents died.
“He never let me down. Never. I don’t see how he did it, to take on the responsibility of raising a little sister,” Nordone said in the ad. “That came from within for Lindsey.”
Hours before Gov. McMaster made his official announcement, President Donald Trump posted on social media that he had personally recommended Nordone for the appointment, describing it as “a fabulous tribute to Lindsey, who loved her dearly!”
