Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, is tied in his reelection bid against Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison, a poll shows.
The Quinnipiac survey, released Thursday, found Graham, a major Republican ally of President Trump on Capitol Hill, is currently tied with his Harrison, who previously served as the chairman of the state’s Democratic Party, at 44% each. About 8% are undecided, a potentially crucial bloc in a state where Democratic candidates in statewide raises usually have trouble rising above 47% of the vote.
“He has been a firebrand advocate for national defense and a leader of his party for 17 years — but has Lindsey Graham’s allegiance to the president put him in jeopardy?” wrote Quinnipiac voter and polling analyst Tim Malloy. “The numbers suggest his tenure on the Hill is in trouble.”
Despite that analysis from Malloy, Trump enjoys a healthy lead over Democratic rival Joe Biden with voters in the state, with 47% saying they plan on voting for him in November compared to 42% saying the same for the former vice president. Trump carried the state in 2016 with 54% of the vote, with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton earning just under 41%.
Meanwhile, the Quinnipiac poll found that in Kentucky, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has a healthy but not overwhelming lead in his bid for another six-year term in the seat he first won in 1984. Although his favorability rating is underwater at 43%, just under 50% are prepared to vote for him in November. His Democratic challenger Amy McGrath earns 44% of the vote. Five percent remain undecided.
Democratic activists have long set their eyes on unseating McConnell, pouring millions of dollars into McGrath’s campaign coffers, who raised more than $41 million over the last year. McGrath, who labels herself as a centrist Democrat, narrowly won her primary in June against liberal Charles Booker. Toward the end of that race, Booker surged among voters, seizing on McGrath’s promises of compromising with Republicans her opposition to left-wing causes such as “Medicare for all.”
“Can a former Marine fighter pilot with 89 combat missions win a dogfight with a seasoned political powerhouse who has gone to war D.C. style for decades? She’s giving him a run for his money,” said Malloy.
