By admin 
After the sudden death of prolific fundraiser and longtime U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, it’s unclear where the war chest he built up for his reelection campaign will go.
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But it will likely not help candidates running to succeed him on the November ballot, who are scrambling to raise money for a speedy primary August 11.
The millions of dollars amassed by Graham cannot go directly to one candidate, including Darline Graham, his younger sister who said Monday she would run for a six-year term to the U.S. Senate.
Several candidates, including former and current federal office seekers, have already said they would compete for the open Republican U.S. Senate nomination, but none have the federal campaign funds Graham had when he died.
U.S. Reps. Russell Fry and Ralph Norman said they would run, while Duke Buckner, Mark Lynch, Mark McBride, Clark Nielson and Samuel Shepherd filed to appear on the ballot Tuesday.
Graham’s campaign ended June with $2.3 million cash on hand. He raised more than any other Republican Senate candidate in the nation so far this election cycle, well exceeding $20 million, Federal Election Commission data shows, and also had the backing of political action committees.
The money from Graham’s account cannot go toward any personal uses. But the campaign has flexibility in how its spent, if at all.
“The law provides a fair amount of leeway with the one major backstop being that the funds cannot be used for the personal use of anyone,” said Shanna Ports, senior legal counsel at the Campaign Legal Center.
It also cannot all be dumped directly into one candidate’s campaign. The treasurer can give up to $2,000 per candidate per election, so it likely won’t have a significant impact on the upcoming special primary to replace Lindsey Graham on the ballot, said Drew Kurlowski, a political science professor at Coastal Carolina University.
Cabell Hobbs is listed as Graham’s treasurer on the Federal Election Commission filings. A LinkedIn account for Hobbs lists him as managing partner of Compliance Consulting Company of Virginia.
The campaign can give the remaining money to a political party, including the state Republican Party, the Republican National Committee or the National Senatorial Republican Committee. There is no limit on how much can be doled out to the party, but the money cannot be earmarked for a particular candidate.
“That money’s probably fairly tied up unless they give it all to the party, and then again, that won’t have any impact on the primary,” Kurlowski said.
Under a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, political parties can directly coordinate with candidates to spend campaign money. However, Republican parties may be hesitant to weigh in on the open primary, Kurlowski said.
Money can also be given to a political action committee, though those contributions are also capped, according to Federal Election Commission rules. Contributions to Super PACs are unlimited. The campaign funds can also be donated to charity.
The $2.3 million could also just sit in Graham’s campaign account indefinitely, Ports said.
“It’s really going to come down to what the treasurer of the campaign committee decides,” said Michael Toner, a former Federal Election Commission commissioner. “That, again, often is in consultation with the former candidate’s family and staff. It comes down to the treasurer deciding … how they’re going to be used.”
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A spokesperson for Lindsey Graham’s Senate bid did not immediately provide more information about how the campaign would handle remaining money.
Cost of primary unclear
While some candidates spent months and millions of dollars campaigning for the regular June primary, which Lindsey Graham won outright, the breakneck Republican special election could also be pricey.
“If you don’t have a million dollars in the bank and relationships with folks in the party all around the state, elected officials all around the state, you’re not in a good position to be successful, in my opinion,” said state Republican Party chair Drew McKissick in an interview Tuesday.
The total cost for campaigns will be opaque until mid-October.
The special election is scheduled Aug. 11, with a runoff taking place Aug. 25, if necessary. A runoff occurs when no candidate receives more than half of the votes in the initial election. The winner of the Republican special election will compete against Democratic nominee Annie Andrews.
Candidates must submit a pre-primary report for the special election by the end of July, but the filing will only capture raising and spending from July 1-July 22, according to a timeline sent by the Federal Election Commission. Large contributions, $1,000 or more, will also be reported within 48 hours leading up to the primary and runoff.
Competitors qualifying for a runoff will also submit a pre-election report by Aug. 13, which will document the campaigns’ raising and spending from July 23-Aug. 5.
A complete picture of how much candidates raised and spent on the special election won’t be available until mid-October, according to the Federal Election Commission filing schedule.
How much cash do candidates have in accounts?
Candidates could fundraise quickly, use personal wealth or tap into previous federal campaign contributions to pay for a roughly three- to five-week long Republican primary cycle.
Senate candidates with federal campaign cash already on hand could spend the money on the U.S. Senate race. All cash on hand totals account for candidates’ fundraising and spending through the end of June.
Norman’s House fundraising committee has just over $90,000 cash on hand. He recently loaned millions to his governor’s campaign. Norman is not running for reelection to represent the 5th Congressional District.
Fry has more than $1 million cash on hand in his U.S. House campaign account, where he is still running. Federal Election Commission rules prohibit transferring funds between committees when a candidate is “actively seeking” both offices.
Lynch has just less than $600,000 cash on hand. He spent more than $5 million on his initial failed bid for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination in June and poured $5 million of his own savings into the campaign.
Former Gov. Mark Sanford hasn’t announced a campaign for Senate, but he transitioned his principle committee to U.S. Senate last week. The account has $1.35 million cash on hand.
The candidate’s campaign accounts don’t account for political action committees and Super PACs, which may also spend big ahead of the special primary.
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