U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican who became one of President Donald Trump’s closest congressional allies and a forceful advocate for an assertive U.S. foreign policy, died Saturday after a sudden illness. He was 71.
Graham’s office announced his death in a social media statement but provided no further details. His family asked for prayers and privacy.
Trump mourned Graham early Sunday, calling him a patriot who was always working. Senate Majority Leader John Thune remembered him as a strong advocate for the United States and its allies.
Graham died one day after visiting Kyiv, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He also announced Friday that he had reached an agreement with the Trump administration to advance sanctions against Russia.
First elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House, Graham briefly ran for president in 2016 and criticized Trump during the campaign. He later became a close presidential adviser and one of Trump’s most prominent defenders in Congress, particularly on foreign policy involving Russia and Iran.
Graham was also known for his friendship with the late Sen. John McCain of Arizona. The two traveled extensively with former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman to promote their foreign policy views.
At the time of his death, Graham chaired the Senate Budget Committee, giving him a central role in Republicans’ legislative agenda. He previously led the Senate Judiciary Committee when Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2020.
Graham also helped write a bipartisan immigration overhaul that passed the Senate in 2013 but stalled in the House. His support for a pathway to citizenship for immigrants without legal status sometimes put him at odds with other Republicans.
He won South Carolina’s Republican primary in June and was seeking another term against Democrat Annie Andrews, a Charleston pediatrician, in November.
Funeral arrangements were not immediately announced.
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