Danny Ford, 40, of Anderson County, S.C., recently appeared on the Republican ballot as a candidate for secretary of agriculture. On Tuesday (July 28, 2026), Ford filed paperwork with the S.C. Election Commission (SCVotes) to run for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the death of Lindsey Graham. He was kicked off the ballot hours later, though, when SCGOP officials told him he did “not meet the qualifications” to run for the seat. Per the text of the rule (.pdf), access to the GOP ballot is expressly limited to registered Republican electors who “voted in at least two of the last three statewide Republican primaries.” As we previously reported, Nordone voted in the 2026 GOP primary election – but did not vote in either the 2022 or 2024 GOP primary elections.