Jesse Watters Calls South Carolina Senate Race

Fox News called the race for Darline Graham's opponent before rival network coverage reached a decision.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections

Jesse Watters Calls South Carolina Senate Race

Live Poll

Do you trust news networks to call election races accurately on election night?

Fox News host Jesse Watters called the South Carolina Senate race for Darline Graham's opponent on Election Night 2026. Fox host Bret Baier cautioned that South Carolina had not been called and that votes in the Greenville area remained mostly outstanding.

Why it matters

The race was filled by Darline Graham after the death of Senator Lindsey Graham, so the outcome determines who holds the seat his family had occupied for years. The premature call and the pending Greenville count highlight how election results can be reported before all votes are tallied.

Lindsey Graham held the South Carolina Senate seat from 2002 until his death in July, when he was seeking a fifth term. As of Election Night, the Greenville vote count remained largely outstanding and no decision desk had called the race.

The players

Jesse Watters

Fox News host who called the South Carolina Senate race on Election Night coverage before the call was confirmed.

Bret Baier

Fox News anchor who cautioned that South Carolina had not been called and that Greenville votes remained outstanding.

Darline Graham

Sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, who was chosen to fill his Senate vacancy and lost the South Carolina race.

The details

During Election Night 2026 coverage, Jesse Watters called the South Carolina Senate race on Fox News for Darline Graham's opponent. Bret Baier told Watters that South Carolina had not been called and that votes in the Greenville area were still mostly outstanding.

July 2026: Senator Lindsey Graham died, creating the vacancy Darline Graham was chosen to fill.
November 3, 2026: Fox News aired Election Night coverage in which the South Carolina call was made.

Political Context

Network projections of close or incomplete races on election night have repeatedly drawn criticism when calls preceded the completion of local counts. The South Carolina dispute, with Greenville votes still outstanding, follows that pattern and revives debate over when a race should be declared.

Voters in South Carolina should rely on official county and state certification rather than early network projections to understand the final result. The outcome will determine who represents the state in the Senate until the next election.