Remembering Lindsey Graham
• Tributes poured in from the capital and across the country on Sunday after word that Sen. Lindsey Graham, a longtime Republican from South Carolina, died from a sudden illness at 71 years old, according to a spokesperson.
• Graham embodied the evolution of the Republican Party as a critic of President Donald Trump who grew to be one of the president’s close advisers. Trump recalled the senator as a tough political opponent turned fierce ally in an interview with CNN, and said he spoke to Graham hours before his passing.
• The late senator made a name for himself as a foreign policy hawk who advocated for military intervention in Iran and Iraq and was a leading voice for US support of Israel and Ukraine.
• Graham’s death will shake up the November election and leaves a Senate vacancy for South Carolina’s governor to temporarily fill.
We’ve wrapped up our live coverage. Read more about Lindsey Graham’s life and legacy here, or scroll through the posts below for tributes to the late senator and other updates.
Medical examiner cites "aortic dissection" in preliminary findings, Graham spokesperson says
Sen. Lindsey Graham died following complications from cardiovascular disease, according to a statement from his communications director, citing preliminary findings from the Washington, DC, medical examiner’s office.
Graham had an “Aortic Dissection due to Arteriosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease,” the statement from Taylor Reidy said.
“The death certificate will be PENDING until all the toxicological and microscopic testing are finalized and at that point the death certificate will be updated to reflect the cause of death and appropriately classify the manner of death,” the statement said.
Mace: "There will be time to decide" whether she will pursue Graham's seat
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina said that “there will be time to decide” whether she will pursue the late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s seat and urged Gov. Henry McMaster to appoint himself for the time being.
“We can’t afford to lose eight seats in the House, so I’m not pursuing it,” she said on CNN.
Mace, who finished in fifth place in the recent South Carolina gubernatorial primary, said she told the term-limited McMaster to appoint himself as a “caretaker” until January.
She said McMaster should not appoint a sitting House member to fill the vacancy because of Republicans’ narrow majority in the chamber.
The lawmaker added that South Carolina’s focus should be on mourning and paying tribute to Graham.
How the loss of Lindsey Graham is being felt on the world stage
CNN’s Oren Liebermann has been reporting on how some world leaders have responded to the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, who built his reputation in part on his status as a US foreign policy hawk.
Watch Liebermann’s report below, and read a roundup of global reactions here.
After the sudden death of US Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C), world leaders like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are mourning the relationship they had with the senator who was well known on the global stage. CNN’s Oren Lieberman reports.
Graham was an outspoken supporter of regime change in Iran
Sen. Lindsey Graham was a longtime outspoken critic of Iran’s government and supporter of regime change in Tehran.
As far back as 2010, Graham argued that the United States ought to “neuter the regime’s ability to wage war” if Iran refused to halt its nuclear program.
In the weeks leading up to the war that began this year, the senator had publicly and privately urged President Donald Trump to attack Tehran.
“We are on the verge of eliminating the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the region,” Graham told reporters in Tel Aviv on February 16, less than two weeks before the US and Israel launched strikes. “The economy is in shambles, the military is degraded, Iranian people in the streets are demanding an end to the oppression.”
The senator added that he was “confident the US and Israel have the capability to deliver a decisive blow to the Iranian regime.”
When the war broke out in earnest, Graham called it “long justified” in a social media post.
“God bless President Trump, our military and our allies in Israel,” Graham wrote. “Freedom for the long-suffering Iranian people.”
Graham’s forceful advocacy for action in Iran did not go unnoticed by the regime, and Iranian state media newscasters appeared cheerful as they announced his death this morning.
For his part, the senator reacted with wry amusement to some of the derision he received from Tehran. When mourners at the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s funeral last week carried placards with Graham’s face in a targeting reticle, the senator responded, “At least they used a good photo of me. Judge me by my enemies.”
Democratic senators recall Graham’s willingness to work across the aisle
Despite deep ideological divides, several of Sen. Lindsey Graham’s Democratic Senate colleagues remember him as someone who was willing to negotiate and work across the aisle.
Here’s what some senators are saying:
- Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar recalled Graham’s love of country and passion for his work. “Even in his sixties, he would get off a plane in a foreign land with a twinkle in his eye and look at me as if to say, ‘Can you believe we are actually here and doing this?’” Klobuchar wrote in a lengthy post on X. Graham “was willing to work on gnarly issues” and at times took “political risks for the right reasons,” she said. “Lindsey Graham was the one who was willing to work with me (when so few would) on helping the Afghan refugees,” the Minnesota senator wrote, adding, “I will miss him.”
- Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren posted on X: “Even though we disagreed on much, he was always willing to negotiate, with humor and wit. My heart goes out to his loved ones.”
- New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker said he was “stunned” by Graham’s sudden passing. He recalled the work they accomplished together in the Senate, including Graham’s willingness to work with him on criminal justice reform that led to the First Step Act. “I will miss my perhaps most unexpected friend in the Senate and someone with whom I got some good things done,” Booker said.
- California Sen. Adam Schiff posted, “Though we did not often agree, Senator Graham was never disagreeable.” Schiff said he will remember Graham’s “staunch support for Ukraine, his willingness to reach across the aisle, and his quick wit and larger-than-life energy are all part of his memory and legacy.”
- Virginia Sen. Mark Warner posted on X: “Lindsey and I disagreed on plenty over the years, but I never doubted his love for this country or his commitment to serving it. He was a fierce advocate for the causes he believed in, especially our nation’s security and the men and women of our armed forces.”
Trump orders flags across the country to be flown at half-staff
President Donald Trump ordered all American flags throughout the United States to be lowered to half-staff until July 18.
The order is to honor the “remarkable life and achievements of Senator Lindsey Graham,” who Trump described as “a dear friend of mine, and a truly great man.”
The American flag on the White House North Lawn was lowered to half-staff just after 7:30 a.m. ET on Sunday.
World leaders pay tribute to Graham
Politicians and other leaders from around the world posted messages Sunday mourning the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, many noting the South Carolina lawmaker’s long-time advocacy for US military aid to Ukraine and Israel.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several members of his cabinet expressed their grief over Graham’s death. Netanyahu said that the senator “devoted his life to defending America, strengthening our alliance and standing up for the free world.” Israel has lost one of its greatest friends, he added.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky remembered Graham as “a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer.” In his tribute, Zelensky said Graham had just returned from a trip to Ukraine, and that the two had met “twice in the past week.”
- NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte wrote that 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.”
- Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote in a post on X that Graham “stood resolutely in defence of democracy and freedom, most recently and particularly with Ukraine and its people.”
- UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Graham was “a steadfast supporter of the NATO alliance and unrelenting in his support for the fight for freedom in Ukraine.”
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote that Graham was “a true friend and partner of Germany in the transatlantic alliance.”
- Syrian Democratic Forces leader Mazloum Abdi wrote that he was “profoundly saddened” to learn of Graham’s death. Graham had been a prominent advocate of US military aid to the SDF, a mostly Kurdish militia in northeast Syria.
CNN’s Dalia Abdelwahab, Maureen Chowdhury, Kara Fox and Tal Shalev contributed to this post.
Neighbors describe scene around Graham's Capitol Hill home when first responders arrived
Along the tree-lined Capitol Hill street where Sen. Lindsey Graham lived in Washington, DC, neighbors described a scene of urgency when first responders arrived at the lawmaker’s house last night.
“There were a couple of fire trucks, an ambulance, police, a bunch of people at the house,” one neighbor, who declined to provide their name, told CNN.
First responders then carted someone out on a gurney and left, the person said.
Jerrett Wilson, a Florida resident who is staying at an Airbnb a couple of doors away from Graham’s townhouse while he visits the nation’s capital, said, “At 9:30 last night, we were arriving back home and just noticed the whole street was shut down. … We were actually standing out here when they were rolling the gurney out and putting him in the ambulance.”
Wilson said he hadn’t realized the person being rolled out on a gurney was Graham, adding that first responders were “basically, taking their time loading him.”
Aaron Gulbransen, a neighbor who says he’s lived a few doors down from Graham for less than four months, said he didn’t find out until Sunday morning that Graham died.
“Obviously it’s a very sad day,” said Gulbransen, who is the CEO of a group called the Conservatives Coalition. “I’ve always had great admiration for Sen. Graham.”
Gulbransen said that when he’d see Graham in the neighborhood, “he was always very nice. Very friendly, very nice, he waved, said hello.”
Other neighbors, who did not want to give their names, described Graham as being a mostly absent neighbor who did not interact much with others on the street. “He was a quiet guy who was hardly ever here,” one neighbor said. “He was very careful about his privacy,” one neighbor said.
Biden recalls finding common ground with Graham on "profound importance of public service"
Former President Joe Biden said he was “shocked” to hear of the sudden passing of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, his colleague in the US Congress for more than a decade.
Biden recalled his global travels with Graham as members of the Senate Foreign Services Committee, along with their tendencies to disagree “often, and sometimes loudly.”
However, the former president and Democratic senator from Delaware said he found common ground with Graham on the “profound importance of public service.”
“Like me, he loved the Senate as an institution, even with all its flaws and complexities,” Biden wrote in a post on X on Sunday.
Patel says FBI assisting Graham death probe; sources say no current evidence of foul play
In a post on X honoring the late Senator Lindsey Graham, FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI “is assisting local authorities and has made every necessary resource available.”
But according to four law enforcement sources who spoke with CNN, investigators have no indication presently that Graham died from unnatural or nefarious causes. One of the sources said local police are conducting a normal review after someone dies, and the FBI has just offered their resources if necessary.
CNN has asked the FBI about Patel’s post and for any other reason why the bureau would be assisting in Grahams death.
Patel has been criticized in the past for his posts on X that have caused confusion in high-profile probes, including in the initial stages of the investigation into Charlie Kirk’s murder.
Blumenthal urges Senate to pass Russia sanctions as "fitting tribute" to Graham
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal urged the Senate to pass his bipartisan Russia sanctions package as a “fitting tribute” to his co-sponsor, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
Blumenthal recalled a “lengthy” conversation with Graham after the pair reached a deal with the Trump administration to move forward with sanctions legislation that they have been pushing for more than a year. “This is a big effing deal – we all did good,” Blumenthal recalled Graham saying to him.
“When we last spoke, he was as enthusiastic and exuberant as I’ve ever seen him. Passing the sanctions bill right away would be a fitting tribute,” he wrote in a statement on Sunday.
Blumenthal and Graham’s legislation, which has the support of most senators, would slap crippling tariffs on countries that import Russian oil, natural gas and uranium.
Trump administration officials remember Lindsey Graham after his passing
Several Trump administration officials are honoring Sen. Lindsey Graham and reflecting on his legacy.
First elected to the US Senate in 2002, Graham came to embody the evolution of the Republican Party, shifting from a critic of President Donald Trump to a fiercely loyal ally and becoming one of the president’s closest advisers on Capitol Hill.
Here’s what some administration officials had to say about Graham after his sudden passing:
- US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz recalled meeting Graham when the late senator was a colonel in the Air National Guard in a post on X. “From Libya to Lebanon, no member of Congress traveled more to appreciate both the troops and bring ground truth back to legislating,” Waltz wrote. “Most of all, he talked about helping the people of South Carolina and that our freedoms must be defended by projecting strength. Rest easy, Patriot.”
- US Ambassador to Israel Mike Hukabee said he is reflecting on Graham’s “life of service, his great sense of humor, and his love of Israel & the Jewish people. Huckabee posted on X that Graham “understood the importance of the US/Israel partnership. He will be sorely missed.”
- Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Graham was a “patriot who loved our country. He was a friend whose advice and humor was always appreciated.” Blanche said Graham’s passing “is a devastating loss for America and the people of South Carolina.”
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed colleagues’ sentiments of Graham being a “Great American and patriot.” Bessent said that as a senator, Graham “worked tirelessly for our country. It was an honor to call him my friend. And work with him to advance President Trump’s agenda at home and on the international stage.”
- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X: “America has lost a Statesman. President Trump and the White House have lost a friend. Rest in Peace, Senator Graham.”
What to know about Lindsey Graham's life and legacy
CNN’s Jake Tapper took a look back through Sen. Lindsey Graham’s long career, which saw him build a name as a political maverick and protégé of the late Sen. John McCain, establish a reputation as a foreign policy hawk, and evolve from a critic of President Donald Trump to a staunch ally and adviser:
CNN's Jake Tapper reports on the legacy Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) will leave behind after his office said he died of a "brief and sudden illness." Graham was 71 years old.
Vance remembers Graham: "He loved the game of politics”
Vice President JD Vance remembered his former colleague Sen. Lindsey Graham on Sunday, saying he was “willing to go to bat for you.”
Vance recalled a time when the two got in a shouting match over Ukraine funding, but said he later found out Graham was working for one of his priorities “behind the scenes.”
“He fought like hell for the things he believed in, and he was just as willing to go to bat for you when it counted,” the vice president wrote in a statement on X.
Vance said Graham “loved the game of politics.”
“He was constantly asking which races were up and down, and how he could help. As he liked to say, ‘I don’t care if you’re an isolationist or a religious fanatic, so long as you have an R next to your name, I want you to win,’” Vance said.
Trump pushes for SAVE Act passage as he remembers Graham
President Donald Trump pushed for passage of his signature voter ID legislation as he remembered Sen. Lindsey Graham, saying the late lawmaker was “becoming strong was the Save America Act.”
“Essentially, we agreed, and essentially we agreed on almost everything. Where he was really becoming strong was the Save America Act… and I think he was going to be there very, very strongly on the filibuster,” Trump said in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union.”
Trump said the last call with Graham was regarding the SAVE Act. Trump has repeatedly pressured the Senate to terminate the filibuster to eliminate one of the hurdles the legislation faces. Several Senate Republicans have pushed back on the effort.
“He was coming aboard, I think, for the filibuster, terminating the filibuster,” he added.
Trump recalls running against Graham in 2016: “He was tough”
President Donald Trump recalled running against Sen. Lindsey Graham in the 2016 presidential primary, calling the late senator a “formidable” opponent.
“Well, he ran against me, and he was, you know, formidable. He was tough. He was tough and smart, and that’s why I got to know him on the campaign,” he told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union.”
Trump said prior to the campaign, he had only spoken to Graham once.
“He was tough and nasty, but I was nasty too, and it worked out fine. And I got to know him by little drips and drabs, and then we became friendly, and there was no better advocate,” he said.
Democratic Sen. Coons remembers Graham: "no better friend, no tougher adversary"
Democratic Sen. Chris Coons reflected on his friendship with the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, marked with bipartisan foreign policy accomplishments across the globe and fierce tensions in the US Capitol.
Coons, who spent Graham’s 71st birthday with him in Turkey during the recent NATO summit, remembered the South Carolina Republican as “no better friend, no tougher adversary.”
The Delaware Democrat said Graham had been “jubilant” after President Donald Trump had signaled to him that he was open to moving forward with a Russian sanctions package that Graham and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal have been pushing for more than a year.
“It’s my hope that we will take up and pass this bill in Lindsey’s memory this week when we all get back to session,” Coons said on ABC’s “This Week.”
While Coons worked with Graham on key foreign aid funding during Trump’s first term, the pair also sparred viciously during now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Commitee.
“Well, I love him like a brother, which means when I fight with him, I want to kill him, and they’re awful and ugly fights. And yet, when we work together, and when I see the good that he wants to do for our country, I’m able to forgive him and find the positives in him,” Coons recalled explaining to someone who had pressed him on his relationship with Graham at the time.
Trump: Graham will be "appreciated more now"
President Donald Trump predicted on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that longtime GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham will be “appreciated more now than when he was living.”
“He just loved being a politician,” Trump said of the South Carolina senator, who died Saturday evening at the age of 71 of what his office called a “brief and sudden illness.”
“He was a tough cookie in many ways,” Trump said. “If he thought he was right and he had people against him he could be very tough actually, but he was a good person.”
Trump says he has someone in mind to succeed Graham, but "it's too soon" to say
President Donald Trump said he has someone in mind for who he’d like to see serve the remainder of Sen. Lindsey Graham’s term in Congress, which ends in January.
“I have somebody that I think would be great, but I don’t want to say it now because it just, you know, it’s too soon with Lindsey,” Trump said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
While South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster can name a temporary replacement, Trump noted that McMaster is a “good friend” and said the governor is “going to do the right thing, I think.”
Graham was running for reelection and won the Republican primary last month. Officials have yet to announce how Graham will be replaced on the November ballot, but state law appears to call for a special primary election to choose a new nominee.
“They’ll have some people joining. Some are good, some are bad,” Trump said. “I never thought I’d be in this position. I thought Lindsey was going to be living forever… He was going to win by a lot.”
