US Senator Lindsey Graham, a prominent Republican who went from being a vocal critic of Donald Trump to one of his most loyal allies on Capitol Hill after Trump became president, has died at the age of 71, Reuters reported today.
A senator from the US state of South Carolina has died after a "short and sudden illness," his office announced this morning on the X platform.
American media outlet NBC News reported that emergency crews responded to a report of cardiac arrest at his Capitol Hill home on Saturday evening.
Shortly after news of his death broke, Trump called Graham "one of the finest men and senators I've known" and a worthy patriot.
After Trump refused in October 2016 to commit to accepting the outcome of the US election if he lost, Graham said: "If he loses, it will not be because the system is 'rigged', but because he failed as a candidate."
Later, after becoming a staunch Trump supporter, Graham publicly opposed Trump's decision in early 2025 to pardon about 1.500 of the president's supporters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, stating that it could lead to new violence.
As an advocate for a strong defense policy, Graham "has consistently advocated for outcomes in the War on Terror that protect long-term national security interests," his website states.
Graham, a former candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, was a prominent supporter of Israel and Ukraine and an opponent of Iran.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on the X platform that he was deeply saddened by the death of Graham, "who stood by Israel in its most difficult moments."
Graham said Friday that China could play a crucial role in pressuring Russia to agree to peace talks, which would help end the war in Ukraine. Graham, a frequent visitor to Ukraine, met with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on July 10. They discussed Ukraine's air defense needs and a bill on sanctions against Russia, Zelensky said.
Graham said at the time that strengthening Ukraine's military capabilities and aligning sanctions with diplomatic efforts could force Moscow to negotiate.
"The path to ending this war, the path to peace, runs more through Beijing than through Washington, Kiev or Moscow. China has disproportionate influence. I would like it to use that influence for the good of the world. I don't believe Putin is ready for that yet, but it wouldn't take much to get him to that point," Graham told reporters on July 10 at Mikhailovsky Square in Kiev.
Graham most recently served as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, and was also a member of the Senate Appropriations, Judiciary, Environment, and Public Works committees.
Graham was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002. Prior to that, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1994 as a representative of South Carolina's 3rd congressional district, according to his website.
He was unmarried and lived in Seneca, South Carolina.
Trump expressed condolences
United States President Donald Trump expressed his condolences today on the death of Graham.
"Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the finest men and senators I have ever known, has passed away! He was always a hard worker and a true American patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!!" Trump wrote in a post on his Twitter account.
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