South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham died in July 2026, leaving his Senate seat vacant. Most states, including South Carolina, allow the governor to appoint a replacement to serve until a special election is held. Governor Henry McMaster made a slightly unusual choice and appointed Graham’s sister, Darline, to the seat.
Why unusual? Because it was the first time in Senate history that someone was appointed to fill a sibling’s seat. Why only slightly? Because it’s not the first time that a family member has filled one.
Congress passed the 17th Amendment in 1913, and since then, vacant Senate seats have been filled by gubernatorial appointment or special election, depending on the state. Since then, there have been 210 appointments to fill vacancies. Twelve of them, about 1 in 17, succeeded a family member. Women accounted for 75% of all family member appointments, over three-quarters of the time to succeed a late husband.
Senate appointments have sometimes elevated family members who were previously not in political life to federal office. And there are other characteristics unique to this system, which has been used, on average, twice a year since 1913.
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Many women first joined the Senate by appointment
Of the 65 women who have served in the Senate, a third first entered office through an appointment. Of those, more than half were appointed to seats previously held by a relative.
The first woman to serve in the Senate, Rebecca Latimer Felton, was appointed in 1922, two years after women won the right to vote nationwide. Though she previously served as a secretary to her husband during his time in the House, Felton was not appointed to fill a seat held by a family member. At age 87, she became the oldest person sworn in for a first Senate term and served for just 24 hours.
The next three women in the Senate were also appointed. Hattie Wyatt Caraway in 1931 and Rose McConnell Long in 1936 were both appointed to succeed their late husbands. In 1937, Dixie Bibb Graves was appointed by her husband, the governor of Alabama.
Most appointed senators did not continue serving
Elected Senators typically hold their seat for six years before running for re-election. Appointed senators, however, only hold their seat until voters elect a successor, either in a regularly scheduled election or a special election. Appointed senators may choose to run in these elections to keep their seats. Darline Graham did exactly this: she filed to run in South Carolina’s runoff election and won the Republican nomination to seek a full term.
Since 1913, there have been 210 appointments to fill Senate vacancies. About 62% of appointees ran to keep their seat, but less than 53% of those who ran were elected and remained in the Senate.
Two-thirds of Senate appointees stopped serving after their appointment ended.
Senator outcomes after appointment, 1913–August 2026
Winning an election does not guarantee a long Senate career
When an appointed senator wins their first election after appointment, they’re usually not winning a full six-year term. Instead, they are winning a special election with just enough time to finish the term of the senator they replaced. Vacancies can occur for several reasons, such as death or resignation, and leftover time can range from a few months to several years, depending on when the vacancy occurred.
However, there are exceptions. If a seat is already up for reelection, the state might just proceed with the general election rather than have a special one.
Of the 69 appointees who stayed after their appointment, 23% won only once, at a special election that was just enough to finish the term they were initially appointed to. Just under half won one or two more full terms, keeping their seat for six to 12 additional years. The remaining 29% served three or more terms.
23% of appointed senators who subsequently won an election only stayed one term.
Length of service for appointed senators who were elected at least once, 1913–August 2026
Not all states allow Senate appointments
When South Carolina’s governor appointed Darline Graham to the vacant Senate seat, he was exercising a power that most, but not all, governors have.
Appointment rules date back to the 17th Amendment, which lets state legislatures decide whether its governor can appoint someone to fill a Senate vacancy. States set rules for exactly how this works, so the process varies.
Forty-five states allow governors to appoint someone to fill a vacant seat. Thirty-four states let the appointee serve until the next regularly scheduled general election. In these states, a special election is held at the same time as the general election to fill the remainder of the term.
Darline Graham, to stick with our example, was appointed in July 2026 and will serve until the new Congress starts in January 2027. Pete Ricketts, by contrast, was appointed to Nebraska's vacant seat in January 2023. He served nearly 23 months as an appointee before voters elected him at a special election held alongside the November 2024 general election, and he took the oath of office that December to complete the term.
The remaining 11 states require an expedited special election. State deadlines range from 90 days after the vacancy in South Dakota to six months in Vermont.
Five states — Kentucky, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin — don’t allow gubernatorial appointments. If a senator from one of these states leaves office, the seat stays vacant until a special election is held. These states typically expedite the election process to minimize the period of vacancy. However, if a vacancy occurs late in the term, the seat is filled at the next regular general election.
