Katie Arrington, whose election in a Republican congressional primary earlier this month in South Carolina ousted incumbent Rep. Mark Sanford, was seriously injured in a two-car accident Friday, leaving her hospitalized and facing numerous surgeries.
In a statement posted by her campaign on Facebook, the candidate and a female friend were traveling to Hilton Head, S.C., Friday night, where she was scheduled to receive an award from a state medical organization Saturday morning.
Arrington, 47, was the passenger in the car as it headed southbound on Highway 17 at about 9 p.m. Friday, reports The Post and Courier in Charleston, S.C., when another vehicle traveling northbound in the southbound lanes hit their car head-on. Her friend also sustained serious injuries, and the driver in the other car was killed.
"Katie sustained a fracture in her back and several broken ribs, as well as injuries that required Katie to undergo major surgery including the removal of a portion of her small intestine and a portion of her colon," the campaign said in the Facebook statement. "Additionally, the main artery in her legs has a partial collapse and will require a stent. Additional surgeries will be required including one likely today; and it is likely that Katie will remain hospitalized for the next two weeks."
Arrington's spokesman Michael Mule told The Post and Courier that she was alert and talking after undergoing surgery at Medical University Hospital early Saturday morning.
Arrington's family said she was asking for continued prayers for the person killed in the accident and that person's family, as well as for a quick recovery for her and her friend, the Facebook statement said.
Fox News reported Saturday that Arrington's Democratic rival Joe Cunningham is suspending his campaign until futher notice following the accident.
Arrington, a state representative, made headlines after defeating Sanford. She used his frequent criticisms of President Donald Trump as a central part of her campaign, and he announced ahead of the primary that he fully endorsed her candidacy because she "is tough on crime and will continue our fight to lower taxes."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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