Republican Sen. Darline Graham is getting badly outraised in South Carolina. So the cavalry showed up. Since early September, outside groups have spent about $6.6 million to keep her in the Senate. A big chunk of it traces back to a group that doesn't have to name its donors.
$6.6 Million to the Rescue
Outside groups have spent some $4.5 million attacking Democrat Annie Andrews since early September. Another $2.1 million went to ads boosting Graham.
Most of it came from Security Is Strength PAC, a Graham-aligned super PAC that raised just over $4.5 million last quarter. Some also came from a PAC tied to Wyoming Republican Sen. John Barrasso, who endorsed her.
Add it all up and Graham's side has outspent Andrews by roughly $3 million over the last several weeks, according to a Post and Courier analysis.
Her Own Campaign Is Running on Fumes
Strip away the outside help and Graham's campaign looks weak. She raised $1.5 million in the third quarter and had just under $610,000 in the bank on Sept. 30. Only about half came from individual donors.
Andrews raised about $9.4 million over the same three months. She had more than $2.3 million left to spend.
That's more than six times what the sitting Republican senator pulled in. With two weeks to go, Graham is leaning on super PACs to carry her.
Follow the Dark Money
Much of the super PAC's money is secretly sourced from a nonprofit called American Jobs and Security. The Post and Courier says it has long been associated with Darline's brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham. Nonprofits like it don't have to disclose their donors.
Federal filings show the nonprofit sent the super PAC $1.3 million in just two weeks this summer, in four checks between July 21 and Aug. 5.
The donors who are named include billionaire hedge funder Paul Singer and well-connected South Carolina businessmen, several giving hundreds of thousands of dollars each.
Andrews Is Funded by Voters
About 95 percent of Andrews' money came from individuals, with donors spread across the country.
She has outside help too. Democratic-aligned groups have spent about $1.7 million on positive ads for her and close to $2.9 million attacking Graham.
But the gap is clear. Andrews is powered by regular donors. Graham is powered by super PACs and a nonprofit that keeps its funders hidden.
Ads About Anything but Your Wallet
So what is all that Republican money buying? In the past week, Republicans spent $132,500 on TV ads focused on LGBTQ+ issues. They spent just $24,000 on the economy.
Andrews has hammered that. She says Republicans fall back on culture war attacks when they have no plan for gas prices, grocery bills or rural hospital closures.
Meanwhile the race is tight. A Republican-aligned Trafalgar poll released Monday has Graham up just 49% to 46%.
Tough on China, Except at Home
Graham has campaigned on cracking down on Beijing. She says America must "stop depending on Communist China for things America can make ourselves."
But The Washington Post found her husband, Larry Nordone, works for two South Carolina companies that rely on Chinese manufacturing. More than 97 percent of one company's shipping containers since 2013 appear to come from China.
Her campaign says he has no ownership stake in either business. There's no evidence Graham had any role in their purchasing decisions.
What Graham Says
Graham says the money is flowing the other way. On Sean Hannity's show, she claimed Democrats are pouring money in and said "Hollywood is backing her."
Her team says she had less time to raise money because of the August primaries. It says $347,000 of what she raised in July went to beating fellow Republicans, not Democrats.
The Bottom Line
Andrews is winning the race for real donors by a mile. So Republicans are trying to buy the seat back with super PAC cash, a big share of it routed through a nonprofit that hides who's paying. If Darline Graham can't raise the money herself, South Carolina should ask who's really bankrolling her. Election Day is November 3.
Sources: Post and Courier (Nick Reynolds); The Washington Post, via Arkansas Public Advocate; Federal Election Commission filings; Political Wire.