Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, dies suddenly at 71

Sen. Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican and prominent ally of President Trump, has died at the age of 71.

Graham died after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office posted on X on Sunday, without providing further details.

Media reports said emergency personnel responded to a call for cardiac arrest at the South Carolina lawmaker’s Capitol Hill home on Saturday night.

Graham had just returned from a trip to Ukraine and was due to appear on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday morning, according to the network.

President leads tributes

Graham, who turned 71 on Friday, had been a senator since 2003 and ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.

Shortly after news of his death emerged, President Trump hailed Graham as “one of the greatest people and senators I have ever known” in a post on Truth Social.

Speaking with NBC later on Sunday, the president said he had spoken with Graham on Saturday night, hours before he died, and “other than being tired, he was fine.”

Trump told Meet the Press he believed Graham’s death was a “quick end, and maybe that’s not the worst way to go.”

Vice President JD Vance called Graham a lawmaker who “fought like hell for the things he believed in.” He recalled how he and Graham once got into a shouting match over Ukraine funding, only to learn later that the senator had been quietly working behind the scenes for one of Vance’s own priorities.

“Lindsey Graham came from humble beginnings and became one of the most powerful lawmakers in the most powerful nation on Earth. That story is a fundamentally American one,” Vance said.

He also remembered Graham’s sense of humor. “Lindsey had the best sense of humor in the Senate,” Vance said, adding that Graham “loved the game of politics” and was “constantly asking which races were up and down, and how he could help.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said, “My heart is heavy this morning to learn the passing of my friend and colleague, Senator Lindsey Graham.”

“He was a strong advocate for the United States and a strong ally to freedom-loving countries across the globe. He believed in the might of America to achieve good in the world and dedicated his life to advancing that cause,” Thune said.

Graham was a prominent supporter of Israel and Ukraine and an opponent of Iran.

“Lindsey Graham has earned a reputation as a conservative problem-solver and one of the strongest proponents of a robust national defense,” his website said, adding that he “consistently pushed for outcomes in the War on Terror that protect our long-term national security interests.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was “deeply saddened” by the news, describing the senator as a “true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer.”

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, also paid tribute. “Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend,” he said in a statement.

Trump critic turned ally

While Graham was a staunch supporter of President Trump in recent years, that had not always been the case. During his brief run for the presidency in 2016 — Graham withdrew his candidacy before the primaries began — he said the GOP would “get destroyed” if it nominated Trump, adding: “And we will deserve it.”

Graham told CNN in 2015 that Trump was “a race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot.” 

“He doesn’t represent my party. He doesn’t represent the values that the men and women who wear the uniform are fighting for,” he said.

Graham also used a profanity to describe Trump following disparaging comments he made about the late former Sen. John McCain, Graham’s closest ally in the Senate and a Vietnam War veteran.

Shortly afterward, Trump read out Graham’s personal cellphone number during a South Carolina campaign rally.

Trump continued to criticize Graham throughout the 2016 campaign after Graham made it clear he would not support him, despite Trump being the Republican candidate.

But once Trump became president, Graham became a loyal supporter and frequent golf partner.

Graham explained his change of position in a 2018 interview with the Associated Press, saying McCain taught him that the country must move forward after elections and this meant “you have an obligation” to help whoever is president.

He publicly disagreed with Trump’s decision upon returning to the Oval Office last year to pardon around 1,500 of his supporters who attacked the U.S. Capitol in 2021, saying it could lead to more violence.

‘A powerful advocate for America’

Graham was well known on the international stage, with many of the U.S.’s NATO allies paying tribute to his commitment to the alliance and transatlantic friendship. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said Graham was “a powerful advocate for America who believed strongly in the NATO Alliance and was actively working to bring an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine.”

Graham advised Trump on foreign policy matters, including Iran and Russia. As part of his trip to Ukraine, he announced on Friday an agreement with the Trump administration to proceed with a package of sanctions against Russia.

Zelensky said Graham, whom he met twice in the past week, had visited Ukraine 10 times since Russia’s 2022 invasion and “was here with our people when it was most needed.”

Graham had long supported policies aimed at isolating Iran and curtailing its missile and nuclear programs. He backed Trump’s decision to strike nuclear sites last year and was a supporter of the latest conflict with Iran.

An anchor on Iranian state television announced Graham’s death during a live broadcast, saying: “I congratulate the great nation of Iran on Lindsey Graham, the warmongering and anti-Iranian U.S. senator, having gone to hell.”

Veteran senator was seeking 5th term

Graham was recently chair of the Senate Budget Committee and a member of the Committee on Appropriations, the Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

A former Air Force lawyer and member of the South Carolina Air National Guard, Graham was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994 for South Carolina’s 3rd Congressional district before entering the Senate.

He never married and lived in Seneca, S.C.

Graham was set to face Democrat Annie Andrews in November’s general election as he sought a fifth term in office.

Under South Carolina law, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint a temporary replacement who will serve until January.

Republicans currently have a narrow 53-47 majority in the Senate ahead of the midterm elections.