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On his first day as an official candidate for the U.S. Senate, Lowcountry businessman and reality television star Thomas Ravenel thanked his supporters for signing and collecting the signatures that put him on the November ballot against incumbent “Republican” Lindsey Graham, Democrat Brad Hutto and Libertarian Victor Kocher. “A lot of people worked very hard on that (signature) effort – and I’m tremendously grateful to each one of them,” Ravenel said. ”This is democracy in action – whether the warmongers and welfare statists in Washington like it or not.”

CHARLESTON — With less than a month to go before the filing deadline, Charleston businessman and reality TV show star Thomas Ravenel says he is proceeding with plans to run as an independent for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Lindsey Graham. Ravenel, who was state treasurer before resigning due to federal drug charges, said Wednesday that he plans soon to complete a petition drive, collecting the signatures of at least 10,000 S.C. voters. That petition would enable him to appear on the ballot this November with three other candidates, including Graham, in a bid for a six-year...

You might see punditry begin to obfuscate the Lindsey Graham win against the backdrop of the Eric Cantor loss. Their collective goal will be to diminish the visibility of conservative strength and grassroots power (because we all know Graham to be a top shelf Decepticon) and cast aspersions toward us by saying the establishment holds in South Carolina. So, how much support does Graham actually carry? Let me just point out something factual for you to consider. Both Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott were on the same South Carolina GOP primary Ballot.

U.S. Sen. Tim Scott easily won the Republican primary in South Carolina on Tuesday, setting up a general election that could make him the state’s first elected black senator. Early returns Tuesday showed Scott, 48, with about 90 percent of the vote over challenger Randall Young. Scott also is the heavy favorite to win in November in this heavily Republican state. …

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Here's how Sen. Lindsey Graham is navigating through six challengers in South Carolina's Republican primary: goodwill, shrewd politics and nearly $7 million in campaign cash. Rep. Mick Mulvaney was thought to be a credible challenger in the June 10 primary, until Graham inspired House leaders to give Mulvaney a seat on the House Financial Services Committee. Mulvaney opted against challenging the two-term senator. A hacking episode resulted in the theft of South Carolina taxpayers' personal information and a public relations problem for Gov. Nikki Haley, also up for re-election this year. Graham advised her on the situation, and now she...

Having three non-Democrats running as Democrats in their Democratic primaries has put South Carolina’s county and state Democratic parties in need for near Demagoguery, it seems, in order to restore democracy. To explain it simpler, less alliterately, and in more detail: Karen Smith, a self-declared Tea Party sympathizer, is challenging Rep. Jim Clyburn in the June 10 Democratic primary. Phil Black challenged incumbent Republican Rep. Joe Wilson in the last two GOP primaries, but is doing it again as a Democrat in 2014. Jay Stamper originally sought Republican support for U.S. Senate in Jan. 2013, then quickly claimed to be...

He’s the Las Vegas casino magnate pouring money into the coffers of “Republican” politicians (and the groups supporting their reelection) in an effort to purchase their opposition to online poker. Why does Adelson want to ban online poker? Easy: It’s costing him money. We’ve got no beef with Adelson, obviously. He’s simply making an investment in the future of his increasingly outdated business model. No, our beef is with the politicians taking his cash – politicians like U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (RINO-S.C.). Last month we wrote about Graham’s support for a federal online poker ban – which we’re sure has...

COLUMBIA, SC — Brad Hutto, a leading Democrat in the state Senate, has filed to run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Lindsey Graham. Hutto joins Columbia businessman Jay Stamper, who moved from Washington state last year to run against Graham, in seeking the Democratic nomination for the seat. Six Republicans have filed to challenge Graham in the June 10 GOP primary. The Orangeburg attorney, who has been in the state Senate for 18 years, said the divisive battle among Republicans over Graham presents a chance for a Democrat to win the Senate seat, which has been held...

South Carolina Republicans like former Florida governor John E. “Jeb” Bush for president, while continuing to support Sen. Lindsey O. Graham for re-nomination against a host of conservative challengers. “Jeb Bush shows strength across many of the poll’s crosstabs and was the choice of 22 percent of the respondents compared to his 16 percent in our November poll,” said Doug Kaplan, the president of Gravis Marketing, the Florida-based polling company. “In the GOP Senate primary survey, Graham polled 60 percent against the field compared to his 54 percent in our November poll,” he said. In the case that no candidate...

"...We believe we’ve found an iron clad way to extend the run-off period in the South Carolina primary. Right now it is at a paltry 2 weeks and we believe we’ve discovered something that will extend that to 60 days...."

The already-crowded race to unseat South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is about to get another candidate. Det Bowers, a well-connected Columbia pastor known for his oratory, put weeks of rumors to rest on Monday and said he is joining the five-person Republican Senate primary field. “No question,” Bowers told CNN in a phone interview. “I am definitely running.” Bowers said he filed fundraising paperwork with the Federal Election Commission in recent days and plans to make a formal announcement about his campaign soon. He also commiserated with donors in Washington and Texas last month, people close to him said. “I...

Joe Dugan, the Executive Producer of the South Carolina Tea Party Convention and Chairman of the Myrtle Beach Tea Party, appeared on Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot channel 125 and said 2014 will be an even bigger year for the movement than 2010, the year which put the Tea Party on the map and gave Republicans back the House of Representatives in an historic midterm Dugan told host and Breitbart News Executive Chairman Stephen K. Bannon, "2010 was a firecracker. 2014 is going to be an explosion." He said the Tea Party has always been right about the...

A South Carolina pastor is mulling a 2014 Republican primary challenge to U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, sources familiar with his thinking tell FITS. DeTreville F. Bowers, Jr. – pastor of Christ Church of the Carolinas – has reportedly raised the prospect of running for Senate in conversations with several social conservative leaders. Some of these leaders have passed this information along to Graham’s campaign, which according to one staffer views Bowers as a “credible threat.” A native of Estill, S.C., Bowers spent two decades as a lawyer before earning his Master of Divinity degree from Columbia International University in the...

According to a new Gravis Marketing poll, If the election were held today, Lindsey Graham would win the South Carolina Senate primary. However, voters say they would support a Tea Party Challenger and still prefer former Senator Jim DeMint over Senator Lindsey Graham.

South Carolina Democrats hope a combination of enthusiasm, a desire to change the direction of the state and more careful vetting of people seeking the party's nominations will help them make gains next election. Democrats acknowledge they need some wins. All nine statewide offices are run by Republicans, along with eight of the state's nine congressmen. A Democrat hasn't won a statewide race since 2006, and the party hasn't taken a statewide or federal office back from the Republicans since 1998. State Democratic Party Chairman Jamie Harrison says the party has talked to credible, competent challengers for every statewide race...

South Carolina Republican Party Chairman Matt Moore shares some striking political data when visiting local party meetings: In a state where the GOP holds most statewide offices and congressional and state legislative seats, Democrats still hold the counties. Democrats also outnumber Republicans as sheriffs, coroners and auditors. But that could change in 2014. Moore says his goal in next year's elections is to flip the local offices to Republican control, completing a transformation that started nearly 50 years ago when then-Democrat Sen. Strom Thurmond went on statewide television and announced he was switching to the GOP — in a state...

COLUMBIA — U.S. Army veteran and Orangeburg attorney Bill Connor announced his candidacy for U.S. Senate Monday at a Myrtle Beach Tea Party meeting.Connor joins Spartanburg state Sen. Lee Bright, Easley businessman Richard Cash and Charleston PR executive Nancy Mace as the fourth candidate challenging U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham in the June GOP primary.The only one of Graham’s challengers to run a statewide race, Connor ran for lieutenant governor in 2010 and lost in a runoff.A Monday news release on Connor’s newly launched website said that “Unlike some, Bill Connor wears the label of Tea Party Republican proudly.”In a video...

Lindsey Graham is talking tough and taking a hard right turn in his bid to win the GOP primary in South Carolina. Graham is apparently attempting to appeal to his base and win over conservative voters in light of recent polls that show his support in the South Carolina GOP primary race may be eroding, thanks in part to his soft stance on Obamacare, as well as his support for amnesty for illegal immigrants and spying on American citizens by the NSA. On Fox News Sunday on Nov. 3, Graham promised to introduce legislation that would ban abortions after 20...

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s campaign is said to be in “meltdown mode” based on internal polling done in the wake of his conflicted votes on Obamacare last week. Already vulnerable among GOP voters due to a host of ideological betrayals (including his support for energy tax hikes, internet tax hikes, amnesty for illegal aliens and domestic spying), Graham’s tortured “opposition” to Obamacare has reportedly caused his perilous position to erode even further. How much further? FITS was not provided with specific details on the poll – but one source close to Graham’s camp tells us the organization has been “temporarily...