Senator Lindsey Graham has died after a brief illness, his office says

Senator Lindsey Graham has passed away, his office announced Sunday.

“On Saturday evening, July 11, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham passed away due to a short and sudden illness,” Graham’s office said in a statement. expression In X.

Graham, a prominent Republican from South Carolina, was 71 years old.

“Senator Graham’s family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult time,” his office said.

Graham’s spokesperson told MS NOW that he had just returned from a trip to Ukraine. He had no additional information about the circumstances of her death and said more information would become available in the coming days.

The Senate website described Graham as: “a conservative problem solver and one of the strongest advocates of a robust national defense.”

President Donald Trump said Graham was “one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known.”

“She was always working and a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!!” Trump said. In a post on Truth Social he said:.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and his wife Sara mourned “along with the American people” loss of our dear friendSenator Lindsey Graham”.

“Lindsey understood that the security of Israel and America were inseparable. She dedicated her life to defending America, strengthening our alliance, and defending the free world,” Netanyahu said in a post on channel X. he said.

Graham was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2002 and was re-elected in 2008, 2014 and 2020.

He served as Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Graham was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994 before serving in the Senate.

Before being elected to Congress, Graham served in the U.S. Air Force and spent six and a half years on active duty as an Air Force attorney.

During the First Gulf War in the early 1990s, Graham was called to active duty and served as a Staff Judge Advocate, where he prepared members for deployment to the Gulf region.

Graham retired from the Air Force Reserves in June 2015 after serving his country in uniform for 33 years. He retired at the rank of colonel.

A native South Carolinian, Graham grew up in a blue-collar family in the small town of Central, where his parents ran a restaurant and pool hall, according to his website. The first member of his family to attend college, Graham earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of South Carolina.