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Prominent US Senator Lindsey Graham, a key ally of President Donald Trump, died aged 71 following a “brief and sudden illness,” his office said on Sunday.
Graham, known for his foreign policy work, was a staunch supporter of the Iran war and in recent years urged both Trump and the Biden administrations to back Kyiv’s fight against Russia’s invasion.
The Republican senator from South Carolina’s office said in a statement on his official X account that he “passed away from a brief and sudden illness” on Saturday evening. Graham turned 71 on Thursday.
“Senator Graham’s family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period,” the statement said.
NBC News reported that emergency services responded to a call for “cardiac arrest” at Graham’s Capitol Hill home on Saturday night, according to police scanner audio obtained by NBC and other outlets.
Trump paid tribute to the influential senator on Sunday, calling him “one of the greatest people” in a post on his Truth Social site.
“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!!!”
Graham made a failed bid for the presidency in 2016, warning at the time that Republicans should not back Trump because he was a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot.”
Their relationship was then strained by the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, with Graham saying his Republican colleagues should “count me out, enough is enough” — although he later voted against convicting Trump in his impeachment trial.
Graham reconciled their relationship after Trump returned to office and supported his re-election bid.
Agence France-Presse
