South Carolina Senate rivals spar over Iran war, AI and Trump in fiery debate

Key Points:

• Republican Sen. Darline Graham and Democratic challenger Annie Andrews debated key issues including President Trump's policies, gas prices, the Iran war, and AI data centers in South Carolina's tight Senate race.
• Graham, appointed after her brother Lindsey Graham's death, defended Trump’s tax bill and supported suspending gas taxes and easing drilling regulations to lower prices, while Andrews criticized Graham’s war votes and called her unqualified.
• Andrews positioned herself as a moderate willing to challenge her party, supporting Second Amendment rights and immigration enforcement, and proposed raising Social Security caps without increasing retirement age.
• The candidates clashed over AI data centers, with Andrews advocating a two-year moratorium and local control to protect consumers, while Graham warned such a pause would harm U.S. national security and favored shifting costs to AI companies.
• The winner of the race will be the first female senator elected from South Carolina, with the GOP super PAC committing $5 million to support Graham’s campaign amid a competitive general election.