Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham’s sudden death sparked vicious vitriol from liberals and conspiracy theories from conservatives as Democrats looked with renewed hope at capturing the South Carolina seat in November.

Some left wing pundits celebrated Graham’s death with hate-filled posts on social media, calling him a toady for President Donald Trump and hoping somehow Democrats could take advantage of the opening to win the seat.

“Good riddance,” liberal podcaster Ana Kasparian wrote on X in response to Graham’s death.

“Young Turks” podcast host Cenk Uygur mocked Graham for supporting U.S. military ventures, saying he “has moved on to the next step in his journey, trying to convince Hades to attack Zeus and Poseidon.”

Meanwhile, some liberals cast an eye on the now open Senate seat, a Democrat has not won in South Carolina in decades, and it’s extremely difficult for them to win statewide in that conservative bastion. When he last ran in 2020, Graham defeated his Democratic opponent by 10 percentage points.

But that didn’t stop some Democrats from getting perverse satisfaction that Graham was gone. Charleston pediatrician Annie Andrews won the Democratic nomination last month and has raised more than $8 million in the race.

Graham, 71, died on Saturday night, and a preliminary medical examiner report said he suffered an aortic dissection, but that didn’t stop MAGA from speculating that he was assassinated by a U.S. foe like Russia or Iran.

The longtime senator and fierce defender of President Trump had just returned from a trip to Ukraine when he was stricken. Graham was a staunch advocate for Ukraine in the nation’s war with Russia and a longtime supporter of Israel. Graham had called Hamas terrorists the “SS on steroids” and suggested Israel could use nuclear weapons in Gaza.

At Trump’s suggestion, South Carolina’s governor, Henry McMaster, said Monday that Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, will be his temporary replacement in the Senate and serve the remainder of his term. Lindsey Graham raised his sister following their parents’ deaths and eventually adopted her.

“Lindsey has always been there for me, and now, I’ll be there for him,” said Nordone, who has never held office but been a disability advocate for the state.

Under South Carolina law a special election must be held to name a Republican nominee to run in November. Graham’s six-year term expires at the end of the year and he would have been the favorite to win another term.

The sudden opening in South Carolina is the second Senate seat that’s occupying the minds of most Democrats and that could be crucial to winning in November. Maine Democrats still have to choose a replacement for Graham Platner, who quit the Senate race last week after a former girlfriend accused him of drunkenly sexually assaulting her.

The party has a much better chance of winning the Pine Tree state this November, depending on who Democratic officials and activists choose at a special convention on July 25. But the controversy-ridden Platner was widely considered the best choice to defeat Republican incumbent Susan Collins until his downfall.

At least 7 Democratic hopefuls have surfaced in Maine, hoping to be picked by a 601-person selection team.

_____

©2026 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit at bostonherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.