Graham, Harrison near end of well-funded Senate fight

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – In the U.S. Senate contest, South Carolina voters must make a choice. They can reelect a powerful incumbent with a senior legislative role who has helped place conservative justices on the Supreme Court. Or they can opt for a new Democratic challenger who promises to focus on issues that he says will benefit working-class and minority communities across the state.

In his pursuit of a fourth term, Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham is facing his most stalwart general election opponent to date, in the fundraising powerhouse of former state Democratic Party chairman Jaime Harrison.

Having defeated all previous opponents by double-digit margins, Graham acknowledges that he is now in a tough political fight, with some polls showing a neck-and-neck contest.

“This is the biggest challenge that I have ever faced, and it’s good not to do it by yourself,” he told a crowd of hundreds at a rally on Tuesday in Greenville, ahead of comments from Vice President Mike Pence.

The contest has been propelled by an impossible-to-ignore onslaught of cash being spent by both candidates, as well as a slew of third-party groups supporting each of them. Harrison has bested all Senate fundraising records, becoming the first candidate to amass a war chest of more than $100 million, $57 million of which came in a single quarter — a record on its own.