Former GOP State Sen. Katrina Shealy Breaks With Darline Graham, Backs Democrat Annie Andrews in South Carolina Senate Race
Key Takeaways
- •Former Republican state Sen. Katrina Shealy said in a CNN interview, five days before Election Day, that she is supporting Democrat Annie Andrews over Darline Graham in the race for the Senate seat held by Graham's late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham.
- •Shealy claimed that Graham's campaign statements do not come from her heart and that she is following instructions from people in Donald Trump's campaign after receiving his endorsement.
- •Shealy said she has known Graham for years and served on the committee that appointed her as executive director of the Commission for the Blind.
- •Shealy argued that higher grocery and gas prices hit less fortunate South Carolinians hardest and said Andrews, rather than Graham, would stand up for residents affected by decisions made in Washington.
- •Asked whether Graham was qualified to be a good senator, Shealy said she hopes so, adding that she hopes Graham would lead with her own heart and mind rather than orders from someone else.
Former South Carolina state Sen. Katrina Shealy, a Republican, publicly broke with a longtime political friend on Thursday, telling CNN — just five days before Election Day — that Darline Graham, the Republican running for the Senate seat held by her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), is not the person she appears to be on the campaign trail.
According to Shealy, nothing Graham is saying matches the woman she has known for years. Instead, the former GOP lawmaker said she is supporting Graham's Democratic opponent, Annie Andrews.
Speaking with CNN's Boris Sanchez, Shealy said that while she and Andrews will likely disagree on some issues, Andrews is authentic — and Shealy believes her. Graham, by contrast, is "just following what people in the Trump campaign are telling her to do. And I believe that's what she'll continue to do. I think we need somebody to represent our state that's going to do the best thing for our state."
Shealy said South Carolina needs someone willing to stand up for the economy and for residents being hurt by decisions made in Washington — and argued that Graham is not that person.
"You know, grocery prices are higher, gas is higher... and it affects those that are the less fortunate," she said. "It's not affecting the legislators here because they have the financial means to take care of that. It affects those who can't take care of [themselves] — those that are being affected by the Department of Social Services, those that are in the Department of Juvenile Justice, those type people. And I think that's near and dear to Annie Andrews' heart. Not that Darline doesn't care, but I think Darline is listening to the wrong side."
Sanchez observed that Shealy appeared to know Graham well enough to say with confidence that Graham is not speaking from personal conviction. "It sounds like you think that she's been led astray," Sanchez said.
"I've known Darline for a while," Shealy explained. "She was the executive director for the Commission for the Blind, and I was on the committee that actually appointed her to that position. I knew her before I helped work on Lindsey's campaign... So we've known each other through politics and those types of things. I think Darline is a great woman. She's got a great family. So, I just believe that she's being swayed by the endorsement of Donald Trump. And, you know, sometimes when you're endorsed by somebody, you have to play the game instead of saying what you really feel."
In Shealy's view, none of what Graham is saying comes "in her heart. Maybe she feels as strongly toward Trump as... she wants people to believe."
Asked by Sanchez whether she believed Graham was qualified and would make a good senator, Shealy said she hopes so, adding that she hopes Graham would lead with her heart and mind rather than with orders from someone else.
The full CNN interview is available on YouTube.
This article originally appeared on Alternet.
