Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., is "strongly considering" a run for the Senate seat left open by Sen. Lindsey Graham's sudden death, two sources familiar with her thinking told Axios, as South Carolina Republicans face a compressed, roughly 30-day window to pick a new nominee for the November ballot. Graham, 71, died late Saturday of what his office called a brief and sudden illness, blowing open a race the four-term senator had been favored to win.

Graham's death sets two separate clocks running.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) has authority under state statute to appoint an interim senator to serve out the remainder of Graham's current term, which was already set to expire Jan. 3. That appointment does not carry the Republican nomination for November, however, and party officials will have to select a new nominee through a fast-tracked special primary.

Under Section 7-11-55 of the state election code, candidate filing opens the second Tuesday after the vacancy, or July 21, and remains open one week.

A special primary is expected by Aug. 11, with a runoff two weeks later if no candidate clears a majority.

The winner will face Democratic pediatrician Annie Andrews, who cleared the Democratic field in the June 9 primary.

Mace, who finished fifth in last month's Republican gubernatorial primary, which was won by state Attorney General Alan Wilson, has run for the seat before.

She challenged Graham in the 2014 GOP primary and finished fifth. Her team plans to field a poll on Monday to gauge her viability.

Other names have surfaced in early speculation, including Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, who lost the June 23 gubernatorial runoff, and Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C. None have publicly announced.

McMaster, term-limited and previously aligned with Graham's reelection effort, could accelerate the field by naming an interim senator who intends to run in the special primary, effectively placing a thumb on the scale.

The political stakes extend beyond South Carolina.

Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority, and Graham's death, combined with Sen. Mitch McConnell's extended medical absence, thins the GOP bench in a chamber where Trump-administration priorities have moved on tight margins.

Graham was returning from a trip to Kyiv, where he was seen meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy the day before his death.

As of July 12, McMaster's office has not announced an interim appointment or a filing timeline.

President Trump, in a Truth Social post early Sunday, called Graham "one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known."