Sen. Darline Graham advanced Tuesday to a runoff election after failing to capture the majority of votes in South Carolina's special Republican primary, where she had the staunch support of President Trump following the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham.

With more than 95% of the votes counted, Graham was in first place with 32.7% of the vote, according to the Associated Press, qualifying her for the contest later this month. She will face Rep. Ralph Norman, who clinched second place with 24.3%, edging Rep. Russell Fry. The runoff will be held Aug. 25 to determine the party's nominee.

Graham and Norman advanced in a crowded field of more than half a dozen GOP candidates. Mark Sanford, a former governor and an ex-congressman, was on track to finish in fourth place. Fry and Norman were winning counties in regions of the state that mirrored the House districts where voters knew them best.

The winner of the contest between Graham and Norman will face the Democratic nominee, Annie Andrews, in November.

Graham, 62, was appointed by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster to finish out her brother's term in the Senate at the urging of Trump. The president then pushed for her to run for a full term. Lindsey Graham, who died last month at the age of 71, had been a close ally of the president and key proponent for the war in Iran.

Norman, 73, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, was first elected in a 2017 special election in his district outside Charlotte, N.C., after Trump tapped Mick Mulvaney, who had represented the House district, to serve as his first budget director. Both Fry and Norman campaigned on their conservative bona fides and alignment with Trump.

Fry, 41, gained favor from Trump after defeating GOP Rep. Tom Rice in 2022 -- after Rice voted to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. Trump previously said Fry would make a good contender for the Senate race before backing Graham. Fry had said Graham wasn't conservative enough, accusing her of supporting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in her previous role.

The result showed the limits of Trump's pull in the race, in which he backed the relatively unknown Graham against several veteran politicians. In addition to the endorsement from Trump, who has won South Carolina by large margins in all of his presidential runs, Graham was backed by McMaster and Sen. Tim Scott (R., S.C.).

Some opponents have lauded Graham for her poise following her brother's death, but said she lacks an extensive record as a conservative and had no experience in elected office.

Some rank-and-file Republicans said they were irritated that the rare Senate vacancy could be handed over to a sibling of the late senator, the first time that has happened in the nation's history.

Moreover, Lindsey Graham, while close to Trump, faced considerable dissent from state voters. Some noted that he received just 57% of the vote in the June primary against businessman Mark Lynch and four lesser-known candidates.

Darline Graham, who spent her career as a public administrator and served as commissioner for the South Carolina Commission For the Blind, has pointed to her experience working with the state government. She also has support from prominent Senate Republican colleagues.

She said that while her brother often discussed national security, she also wanted to focus on issues that matter to the average person, such as the price of groceries, gas and healthcare.

"I'm not an expert on Congress. I'm an expert on the problems facing families in South Carolina," Graham said at a candidate event.

She recently co-sponsored a bill named in honor of her brother that overwhelmingly passed the Senate. It aimed to reduce funding for Russia's war effort by targeting Russian energy revenues, expanding sanctions on Iran and allowing tariffs of up to 100% on top buyers of Russian oil.