Paul Dans to Challenge Lindsey Graham in Senate Race

Conservative attorney Paul Dans is gearing up to officially announce his campaign against Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina on Wednesday.

Dans has publicly outlined his reasons for challenging Graham, a long-time incumbent. In a recent interview with The Post and Courier, Dans expressed his criticisms of Graham, particularly focusing on the senator’s shifting stance regarding former President Donald Trump.

“Before becoming Trump’s golfing buddy, Graham was one of his fiercest critics,” Dans noted. He questioned whether people really change, suggesting that Graham’s previous anti-Trump views were insincere.

He described Graham as a “70-year-old childless warmer,” contrasting this image with the values he believes the people of South Carolina hold dear—namely God, family, and country. Dans criticized Graham’s foreign policy approach, suggesting it leans toward aggression.

Dans gained recognition for his involvement in “Project 2025,” a policy initiative linked to the conservative Heritage Foundation aimed at shaping the Republican platform for the 2024 election. However, Trump eventually distanced himself from it after being criticized by Democrats. Dans stepped away from the project in July 2024.

In what is expected to be a competitive Republican primary, Dans joins a field that includes former South Carolina lieutenant governor and other lesser-known candidates.

South Carolina’s primary system means that if no candidate receives a majority of the votes, the top two contenders will have to go head-to-head.

Graham, who has received Trump’s endorsement for reelection, also enjoys support from notable figures such as fellow South Carolina Senator Tim Scott and Governor Henry McMaster.

On the Democratic side, former candidate Annie Andrews, who lost to Republican Nancy Mace in 2022, is among several individuals vying for the Senate seat.