Former Rep. Mark Sanford, R-S.C., on Friday endorsed Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., in the South Carolina Republican Senate primary runoff contest.

Sanford placed fourth in the first round, in which Norman and Sen. Darline Graham advanced to the runoff. 

President Donald Trump has endorsed Graham and is scheduled to headline a rally Friday in the town of Myrtle Beach for her. 

Graham was appointed last month to replace her brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham, after he died unexpectedly and has since sought the seat full term.

The runoff is set for Tuesday evening. South Carolina is regarded as reliably Republican so the winner of the Tuesday primary would be heavily favored in the general election.

Former candidate Mark Lynch has also backed Norman, while Rep. Russell Fry backs Graham. Sanford announced his support for Norman in a social media post.

"Are there things on which I disagree with Ralph, absolutely. But again there are no carbon copies as candidates, and I have seen first hand his experience in legislative circles, matched by a conservative voting record and conservative stands," he posted on X. "And all of this brings me to a binary choice, not only on the bigger question of less government and more freedom, but on who do I believe holds the best shot at holding the line on government spending, our debt and its accompanying deficits? I am freaked about this issue given our crossing of the $40 trillion federal debt mark this week. It has heinous implications for all of us."

"And so as much as I would like to honor tradition and old friendships, the stakes are simply too high as our nation really is at a financial tipping point. It's for these reasons and more that I will be voting for Ralph on Tuesday and respectfully ask that you do the same," he added.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent for Just the News. Follow him on X.