Free Republic

As pollsters predicted, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham won a second term, defeating Democrat Bob Conley. The Associated Press called the race for Graham — a close friend of Sen. John McCain — shortly polls closed at 7 p.m. The call was based on an analysis of voter interviews, conducted for the Associated Press by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International. “Number one, I’m grateful — appreciative — to have a second term,” Graham told the AP in a telephone interview. He said he’ll continue reaching out to Democrats and mainstream conservatives as he returns to Washington. “I’ll just keep...

A few weeks ago, I received an e-mail from the campaign of a young man named Bob Conley. He is running for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Lindsey Graham. I was very much impressed by his many conservative positions and his obvious dedication to our ailing Constitution, which has been under attack these last eight years. This fellow, I thought, must have the faith of a mustard seed to try to take on Lindsey Graham and his $3.5 million campaign war chest, contributed by Washington lobbyists and special interest groups. If he is willing to do this, he at least...

COLUMBIA, S.C.—A group supporting U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham's opponent in next week's election said Monday it would pay to broadcast ads showing the Republican senator referring to immigration critics as "bigots." The ad shows him telling a Latino group that supporters of a 2007 immigration law overhaul effort were "going to tell the bigots to shut up."

CAYCE -- On a recent Thursday evening, the South Carolina Democrat sharing the top of state ballots with Barack Obama strode through a restaurant parking lot where the bumper stickers featured the presidential candidacies of Ron Paul, Bob Barr and Chuck Baldwin. Inside the family eatery just outside Columbia, a mix of independents, Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and Constitution Party members waited. A smattering of members of Southern heritage groups were in attendance. Copies of "Free the South: A Blueprint for Peaceful and Legal Secession," rested on a couple of tables. In a year when South Carolina voter registration shot up...