PICKENS COUNTY — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a fixture of Republican politics and a leading voice on American foreign policy for over two decades, died Saturday night at his home in Washington. He was 71.
The South Carolina Republican died from a sudden aortic dissection, according to a preliminary report from the D.C. medical examiner. The condition was a result of arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Emergency personnel responded to a cardiac arrest call at Graham’s Capitol Hill residence hours after he returned from a diplomatic trip to Kyiv, Ukraine.
Lindsey Olin Graham was born July 9, 1955, in Central. His identity remained deeply rooted in his humble Upstate upbringing. His parents, Millie and Florence James Graham, operated the Sanitary Cafe, a local Central landmark that functioned as a combination pool hall, bar, and liquor store.
The Graham family lived in a single, small room attached to the back of the pool hall before later moving into a mobile home in the area. Peers often noted that growing up in a trailer park was South Carolina’s equivalent of Abraham Lincoln’s log cabin, forging the folksy, fast-talking demeanor that defined Graham’s public life.
Tragedy struck his youth when both of his parents died within a year of each other while he attended the University of South Carolina. As the first member of his family to attend college, Graham frequently returned to Central during those years to manage the family business and care for his 13-year-old sister, Darline, whom he legally adopted to keep their small family together.
Even as his influence grew globally, Central remained Graham’s political anchor. When he launched his 2015 bid for the presidency of the United States, he bypassed Washington and Columbia, instead returning home to stand on a stage in Central to announce his candidacy to the neighbors who had raised him.
After earning his law degree in 1981, Graham joined the U.S. Air Force, embarking on a 33-year military legal career across active duty and the South Carolina Air National Guard. He entered local politics in 1992, winning a seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives. Two years later, he won election to the U.S. House during the 1994 Republican sweep. He gained national attention in 1999 as a manager during the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton.
In 2002, Graham succeeded the retiring Strom Thurmond in the U.S. Senate, a seat he defended successfully through four subsequent elections.
In the Senate, Graham became known as a staunch defense hawk. Alongside his close friend, the late Sen. John McCain, Graham regularly pushed for a muscular U.S. foreign policy and strong military alliances.
His political legacy was also defined by sharp pivots. During the 2016 Republican presidential primary, Graham was a fierce critic of Donald Trump, calling him a “race-baiting, xenophobic religious bigot.”
Yet Graham later transformed into one of Trump’s closest congressional allies. He used his position on the Senate Judiciary Committee to help secure conservative judges for the federal bench and advised the president on international affairs.
Graham’s final days matched his career focus on international relations. On Friday, he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv to discuss a new package of sanctions against Russia.Upon returning to Washington on Saturday, Graham spoke by phone with Trump before suffering the fatal medical emergency later that evening.
Tributes arrived quickly from across the political spectrum, frequently noting that the senator never lost sight of his Upstate roots. Trump praised Graham as a “true American Patriot,” while South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster called the lawmaker from Central “irreplaceable.”
Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.