Lindsey Graham, the Republican senator from South Carolina who served more than two decades in Congress, died Saturday evening at the age of 71. His office confirmed the news in a statement that said he passed away from a brief and sudden illness.
According to Rolling Stone, emergency services responded to a call from a Capitol Hill home owned by Graham from a person suffering from chest pain. About 25 minutes later, emergency personnel reported they were administering CPR. Deadline reported that NBC News described the initial call as one for cardiac arrest.
"On the evening of Saturday, July 11, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham passed away from a brief and sudden illness," Graham's office said in a statement. "Senator Graham's family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period."
President Donald Trump quickly responded on Truth Social. "Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead! He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!!," Trump wrote. "So sad!"
Graham had only recently returned from Ukraine, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Zelenskyy responded to the news of Graham's death with a statement, calling Graham "a true defender of freedom and of the values that make our world safer." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also issued a statement: "Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend."
Graham was first elected to the Senate in 2003, after serving in the House beginning in 1995. He had run to replace retiring Sen. Strom Thurmond. A retired Air Force reserve colonel and military lawyer, he was born and raised in South Carolina and was the first member of his family to attend college. He served in the Air Force and the reserves for more than three decades.
Early in his career, Graham was known as a foreign policy hawk willing to break with his party on certain issues. A former senior Democratic staffer who worked with Graham on bipartisan legislation told Rolling Stone in 2020, "Like John McCain, he was a conservative Republican, but it was always worth asking where he was going to be on a particular issue, because he wasn't completely beholden to party orthodoxy. He'd often be way out ahead of his staff, negotiating on the Senate floor unbeknownst to them, and they would be playing catch-up."
His relationship with Trump evolved dramatically over the years. Graham ran against Trump in the 2016 Republican primary and was among his fiercest critics. After Trump won the presidency, Graham became one of his most reliable allies. He later donated $500,000 to Trump's efforts to legally challenge the result of the 2020 election. At the time of his death, Graham was running for re-election in November.
