Sen. Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally and foreign policy hawk, dies after a brief illness

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more muscular U.S. foreign policy abroad, died Saturday evening after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office said in a statement on social media. He was 71. (Produced by Elaine Carroll)

Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy, has died after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office said. He was 71.

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., gestures as he speaks to the media in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., left, gestures as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters while in flight on Air Force One, Jan. 4, 2026, as they were returning to Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, July 10, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. answers questions from the media near an exhibition of damaged Russian vehicles in central Kyiv, on July 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks as Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., listen, at a primary election night party at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds in Columbia, S.C., Feb. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

SEUNG MIN KIM , MARY CLARE JALONICK and MEG KINNARD

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Lindsey Graham , one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy , has died after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office said. He was 71.

The statement posted on social media early Sunday said his family “appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period.” It did not provide any additional details about the circumstances surrounding the Saturday night death of the South Carolina Republican, a former Air Force lawyer who served in Congress for three decades.

Trump said Graham was “like a member of the family. It’s very tough.” The president said Graham called him on Saturday night after returning from a trip to Ukraine. “He sounded a little bit tired, but perfect,” Trump told NBC’s ”Meet the Press.”

A noted hawk, Graham was one of the most influential figures in Washington on foreign affairs and he advised Trump on matters such as the Iran war and Russia. On Friday, Graham had announced an agreement with the Trump administration to move forward on a package of Russia sanctions .

As chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Graham had a central role during Trump’s second term as Republicans pushed major legislation on party-line votes while holding a narrow 53-47 majority in the chamber.

Under South Carolina law, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint a temporary replacement for Graham, who was seeking a fifth term in November.

Graham was close with Trump

Graham, elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House, long promoted a policy of robust U.S. military interventionism and strong national defense that in later years would put him at odds with the growing isolationist wing of his party.

Over time, Graham became well-known for his close ties with Trump, whom the senator briefly ran against for the presidential nomination in 2016.

Their relationship would begin on a rough note, with Graham calling the then-New York businessman “unfit for office.” Graham used a profanity to describe Trump after Trump made disparaging comments about Arizona Republican John McCain, Graham’s best friend in the Senate and a Vietnam War veteran. McCain and Graham, along with Sen. Joe Lieberman , I-Conn., were known as the “Three Amigos” and frequently traveled together to promote their foreign policy views around the globe.

During a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump read out Graham’s personal cellphone number and continued to belittle him throughout the 2016 race as Graham made it clear he would not support Trump.

Graham, however, shifted significantly once Trump won the White House. He emerged as one of Trump’s top allies — speaking with him frequently and becoming a regular presence on the golf course alongside the president — even as McCain remained a critic.

In a 2018 interview with The Associated Press , Graham explained his pivot by saying McCain taught him that the country must move forward after elections and that meant “you have an obligation” to help the president. McCain ran twice for the White House.

“And I’ve tried to be helpful where I could because I think he needs all the help he can get,” Graham said of Trump. “You can be a better critic when people understand that you’re trying to help them be successful.”

Graham was a prominent defender of Trump during the president’s two impeachments. That was a reversal from Graham’s role as a House prosecutor during Democratic President Bill Clinton’s impeachment in 1998. Both presidents were eventually acquitted.

Graham had appeared to break with Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, saying in a dramatic speech on the Senate floor that night, “Count me out. Enough is enough.” But the senator soon returned to Trump’s side and the two remained close during Trump’s second term.

Foreign policy was a focus for Graham

Graham had just been in Ukraine to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said the senator visited his country 10 times during the years since Russia invaded in February 2022. “Lindsey was a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer,” Zelenskyy said.

Graham’s travels made him a familiar face to dozens of world leaders.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Graham understood that the security of Israel and the United States was inseparable.

“Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend,” Netanyahu said.

Graham led both the Senate Budget and Judiciary committees

As Budget Committee chairman, Graham helped oversee a Senate procedure that allowed Republicans to pass significant policies such as last year’s tax law without the threat of a Democratic filibuster.

He had previously led the Senate Judiciary Committee when Republicans confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in 2020. The senator was in line to regain that gavel if the party kept its majority after the midterm elections and he pledged to confirm “as many conservative judges as possible.”

Graham was a key player in the Senate’s efforts to craft a massive immigration overhaul in 2013 as a member of a bipartisan group. The legislation passed the Senate with 68 votes but was never taken up by the House, so it did not become law.

But Graham’s views on immigration, particularly an endorsement of a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. without legal status, put him at odds with some Republican factions.

He sometimes faced primary challenges in his home state of South Carolina, but he won the nomination outright in June.

The senator addressed the president in his victory speech last month , saying, “I’m going to help you change this world and change this country.”

An “irreplaceable” force in the Senate

Graham was known for his influence not only on Trump, but also with his fellow Republicans who were aware of his ability to sometimes move the president’s thinking — as well as for his relationships with world leaders.

He was also known for his sense of humor, often deployed to diffuse tensions. Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the second-ranking Republican, said Graham will be missed for his “quick wit and infectious laughter.”

McMaster said in a statement that Graham was “irreplaceable.”

Graham often worked across the aisle, even as he remained fiercely loyal to Trump. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat, said in a statement that “personal relationships often mattered more to him than the political disagreements of the day.”

To Democrat Jaime Harrison, a former national and state party chairman who challenged Graham in 2020, even in their “fiercest political battles” the two men “could still share a conversation, a laugh, and a mutual respect for South Carolina.”

Graham spoke about his humble roots, growing up in the back of a South Carolina bar and helping to raise his sister after his parents died at a young age. Graham was not married and did not have children. His closest living relative is sister Darline Graham Nordone, whom he helped raise.

Special election to replace Graham could be within weeks

Graham won 57% of the GOP vote in the primary and was up against Democrat Annie Andrews, a pediatrician, and several minor party and independent candidates in November.

After McMaster appoints a replacement, South Carolina law requires a special primary for voters to select a new nominee within weeks of a vacancy. The general election winner will take office January, beginning a full six-year term.

A number of Republican names began circulating as possible replacements to serve out the rest of Graham’s term, including Reps. Nancy Mace and Russell Fry.

The brief statement by Graham’s office did not explain the circumstances of his death, which came at a time when there has been some concern about a lack of transparency about the heath of some members of Congress.

Rep. Tom Kean Jr. , R-N.J., was absent without explanation for months before recently returning to Congress and disclosing he had been diagnosed with depression.

Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell , the former longtime Republican leader, was hospitalized weeks ago for undisclosed health reasons.

Kinnard reported from Columbia, S.C., Associated Press writers Christopher Megerian in Washington, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Brian P. D. Hannon in Bangkok and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

Kim covers the White House for The Associated Press. She joined the AP in 2022 and is based in Washington. Kim is also a political analyst for CNN.

Kinnard covers national politics for The Associated Press. She lives in South Carolina.