WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced Monday he would like the South Carolina governor to select the late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s sister to fill the Republican’s seat for the remainder of his term.
“I recommended, to Governor Henry McMaster, Lindsey Graham’s wonderful sister, Darline, to serve as interim Senator from the Great State of South Carolina,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “This would be a fabulous tribute to Lindsey, who loved her dearly!”
McMaster is scheduled to announce his appointment to the Senate at 4 p.m. Eastern during a press conference. The person selected for the role would serve out the remainder of Graham’s term through early January. Graham was close to his sister, Darline Graham Nordone, after their parents died when she was a teen.
Graham, 71, died unexpectedly this weekend of an aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease, according to preliminary findings from the District of Columbia’s medical examiner that were shared by Graham’s office.
Graham’s death has also triggered a special election process in his home state to determine who will advance to the November general election for a full six-year Senate term.
Graham won the Republican primary in June and was set to face Democratic candidate Annie Andrews later this year.
The special election to determine which Republican will advance is scheduled for Aug. 11, with a runoff taking place on Aug. 25 if necessary.
Jennifer covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include congressional policy, politics and legal challenges with a focus on health care, unemployment, housing and aid to families.
SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
South Carolina US Sen. Lindsey Graham dies after ‘brief and sudden illness’
Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint someone to fulfill Graham’s term. A special GOP primary is set to replace Graham on November’s ballot.
BY JANE NORMAN — JULY 12, 2026 7:56 AM UPDATED 7:00 PM
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham died on Saturday night of a “brief and sudden illness,” the South Carolina Republican’s office announced early Sunday.
“Senator Graham’s family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period,” the statement added.
Graham, who turned 71 on Thursday, was a close ally of President Donald Trump and chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. In June he defeated five Republican challengers in the Senate primary in South Carolina and was to face Democrat Annie Andrews in the general election.
A statement shared with the media Sunday night by Graham’s office, citing the District of Columbia medical examiner, said he died following an aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. According to the Mayo Clinic, an aortic dissection occurs when there is a tear in the inner layer of the aorta, the body’s main artery; blood rushes through the tear; and the inner and middle layers of the aorta split.
The statement also said Graham’s death certificate will be pending until all toxicological and microscopic testing is final.
Trump on social media called Graham “one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known.”
“He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad!”
Graham, who had just returned from a visit to Ukraine, had been scheduled to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday morning. Instead, Trump came on as a guest and told host Kristen Welker he spoke with Graham on Saturday night, “sometime in the sevens,” apparently not long before Graham died. “He was really a worker but he sounded great, actually,” Trump said, adding that Graham said he was “a little tired” after the trip overseas.
“I got a message about 1 o’clock in the morning from one of the people in his office that he had passed away,” said Trump.
“He was a great politician actually,” said Trump, who had endorsed Graham. “There was nobody like him. He loved being a politician, and he was going to win his election, he was going to win it big.”
Trump said if he “had a problem with a Democrat, he could work it out,” and added that Graham in their final conversation underlined his advocacy for the SAVE America Act, an elections bill stalled in the Senate.
Asked by Welker if he had anyone in mind who should be appointed to the seat, Trump said, “I have somebody that I think would be great, but I don’t want to say it now because … it’s too soon.”
Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, also on “Meet the Press,” said, “The entire state has lost a statesman. I have lost a friend.” He said he expected at least one or two U.S. House members from South Carolina would be considered for the appointment to Graham’s seat.
Former President Joe Biden, a Democratic member of the Senate from Delaware before his election to the presidency, said on social media he and Graham served together for more than a decade and worked closely on many issues as members of the Foreign Relations Committee. “We disagreed often, and sometimes loudly,” said Biden. “Lindsey and I did agree on the profound importance of public service. Like me, he loved the Senate as an institution, even with all its flaws and complexities.”
Trump said Sunday afternoon has has ordered all U.S. flags be lowered to half staff until July 18.
Return from Ukraine
Graham, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs, while in Ukraine met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who posted photos of the two of them on X on Friday. “This is already his 10th visit to our country, and we appreciate this support,” Zelenskyy said then.
Early Sunday, Zelenskyy posted on social media: “Deeply saddened by the news of the passing of United States Senator Lindsey Graham. Lindsey was a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer.” He said they had met twice on Graham’s most recent visit.
Graham’s office did not provide additional details on the circumstances of his death. The Washington Post, citing police scanner audio, reported that emergency responders at Graham’s Washington, D.C., home worked to stabilize a man on Saturday night and transported the individual to a hospital.
Special election information
FROM SC DAILY GAZETTE
Under South Carolina law, a special primary election must be held to select the next Republican nominee to the seat Sen. Lindsey Graham held for more than two decades.
NBC News reported that the response, according to emergency responders’ audio, was to a call for “cardiac arrest” and CPR was in progress. “Photographs from the scene reviewed by NBC News show paramedics carrying a person on a stretcher from Graham’s home to an awaiting ambulance. Police cars and fire trucks were also on site,” NBC said.
‘My heart is heavy’
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said in a statement “my heart is heavy” to learn of Graham’s death.
“Lindsey’s long and dedicated service in the Air Force and in Congress carried him to far-flung regions of the world,” Thune said. “He was a strong advocate for the United States and a strong ally to freedom-loving countries across the globe. He believed in the might of America to achieve good in the world and dedicated his life to advancing that cause.”
Graham, who was born in Central, S.C., first joined Congress in 1994 when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from the Third Congressional District. He was elected to the Senate in 2002 and reelected in 2008, 2014 and 2020.
He earned undergraduate and law degrees from the University of South Carolina and spent six-and-a-half years on active duty as an Air Force lawyer. He then served in the South Carolina Air National Guard and Air Force Reserves, according to his official biography, retiring at the rank of colonel in 2015.
Under the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the governor of a state must schedule an election to fill an empty Senate seat. South Carolina law says the governor can make an appointment to fill the Senate seat for the remainder of Graham’s term, which expires in January, according to the South Carolina Daily Gazette.
Also under South Carolina law, a special primary election must be held to select the next Republican nominee to the seat Graham held. The special primary is set for Aug. 11 with a runoff if needed on Aug. 25, the Daily Gazette reported.
The Democratic nominee for Senate, Andrews, expressed her condolences on X. “From his small-town South Carolina roots to the halls of the U.S. Senate, he was a man of great faith who proudly served our nation as a JAG officer and Air Force colonel,” she said. “I hope that South Carolinians will join me in setting partisanship aside and offering gratitude to Senator Lindsey Graham for his service to the great state of South Carolina.”
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said on social media he and his family were “devastated” by Graham’s death. “Lindsey Graham is irreplaceable,” he said. “The fiercest of fighters for South Carolina and America—and a loyal and steadfast friend.”
Narrow margin in Senate
Republicans control the Senate with 53 seats. Graham’s death came as concerns have mounted about the continuing absence of 84-year-old Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, whose office has said he has been hospitalized since June 14 for an undisclosed condition.
McConnell released a statement Sunday saying he fell before he was hospitalized and he has moved from being a hospital patient to “a rehabilitation center where I’ll keep regaining my strength.”
Senators expressed their condolences to Graham’s family and praised his legacy after awakening Sunday to the unexpected news. “I’m shocked and saddened by the passing of my friend and colleague Senator Lindsey Graham,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. “Lindsey was a lifelong public servant, a tireless champion for South Carolina, and an outspoken advocate for America’s role in protecting freedom throughout the world.”
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, a Wyoming Republican, said Graham represented South Carolina and America “with pride and determination. He guided the Senate through our toughest battles while Chairman of both the Judiciary Committee and the Budget Committee. He carried the day with his mission clarity and steadfast leadership.”
Vice President JD Vance, a former GOP senator from Ohio, said on social media that Graham “came from humble beginnings and became one of the most powerful lawmakers in the most powerful nation on Earth,” and recalled a shouting match they once got into at a Senate lunch over a Ukraine funding bill. Vance said he then learned Graham was quietly pushing for rail legislation that Vance wanted.
“That was Lindsey Graham. 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,” said Vance. “Lindsey had the best sense of humor in the Senate. He 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.’”
Mourning and next steps in South Carolina
FROM SC DAILY GAZETTE
Gov. Henry McMaster will determine who fills the rest of Lindsey Graham’s term in the U.S. Senate, which expires in January.
State law gives the governor authority to make an appointment. How quickly that might happen remained unclear Sunday afternoon.
“Lindsey Graham is irreplaceable. The fiercest of fighters for South Carolina and America — and a loyal and steadfast friend,” the governor said in a statement. “We shall not see his likes again.”
State law also calls for a special primary, set for Aug. 11, to select the next Republican nominee. Last month, Graham trounced his five GOP competitors to win the primary with 57% of the vote, again avoiding a runoff.
The GOP field to replace him on the November ballot could be much bigger, almost certainly needing a runoff, which would be Aug. 25.
U.S. Sen. Tim Scott pointed to Graham’s humble beginnings in honoring his friend. Graham, who often spoke of growing up in a single room attached to his parents’ bar in Pickens County, adopted his then-13-year-old sister when both of his parents died within 15 months while he was at the University of South Carolina. His father died of a heart attack.
“That pain and misery led him into public service,” Scott said on NBC’s “Meet the Press. “He started in public service because he wanted to make sure that no one felt invisible, that the people who needed the help, that the government was there to help those who could not help themselves.”
Scott was the last U.S. senator from South Carolina appointed to the role.
In December 2012, then-Gov. Nikki Haley appointed then-U.S. Rep. Scott to replace Jim DeMint following his resignation to lead the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Scott easily won his first election to the U.S. Senate in November 2014 to the remainder of DeMint’s term, followed by easy re-elections to full terms in 2016 and 2022.
It’s been 61 years since a U.S. senator from South Carolina died in office. In that case, the governor essentially appointed himself.
In 1965, then-Gov. Donald Russell resigned following the death of U.S. Sen. Olin Johnston, enabling the lieutenant governor to ascend and appoint Russell to the Senate.
But voters refused to elect Russell to the job after that. Former Gov. Fritz Hollings defeated Russell in the 1966 special election to fill the rest of Johnston’s term and ultimately remained in the U.S. Senate until his retirement in January 2005.
Preliminary findings of the Washington, D.C., medical examiner are that Graham died of an “aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease,” the senator’s office released late afternoon Sunday. An aortic dissection is when there’s a tear in the inner lining of the aorta, the body’s main artery, and blood rushes through, causing the artery to split, according to the Mayo Clinic. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is a hardening of the arteries caused by the buildup of plaque, or deposits that include fat, cholesterol and calcium, according to the American Heart Association.
Statements of mourning Graham’s death poured in from across South Carolina. Here are a few:
• State party Chairman Drew McKissick: “It is with heavy hearts that we learned about the passing of our senior Senator Lindsey Graham. From the lives of the unborn to our nation’s national security, there was no stronger supporter than Senator Graham. His voice will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his sister, Darlene and the rest of his family.”
• South Carolina House GOP Caucus: “Today, South Carolina lost one of our own. From Central, South Carolina to the United States Senate, Lindsey Graham never lost sight of where he came from. He devoted his life to serving South Carolina and our nation, and his love for this state was evident in everything he did. He was a true statesman.”
• South Carolina Senate GOP Caucus: “A devoted servant of South Carolina, a member of the United States Air Force, and a titan in Washington, Senator Lindsey Graham demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to our state and nation. We join the rest of South Carolina — and America — in mourning the tragic loss of our friend and longtime Senator, Lindsey Graham, and we pray for his family.”
The woman who Graham was to run against in the November General Election, Dr. Annie Andrews, posted: “My sincere condolences are with the family of Lindsey Graham, his friends, his devoted staff, and all who are grieving this sudden and tremendous loss.
“From his small town South Carolina roots to the halls of the U.S. Senate, he was a man of great faith who proudly served our nation as a JAG officer and Air Force colonel.
“I hope that South Carolinians will join me in setting partisanship aside and offering gratitude to Senator Lindsey Graham for his service to the great state of South Carolina.”
Mayor Nathan Senn posted on behalf of the City of Laurens:
“I am saddened by the death of Senator Lindsey Graham, and I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, staff, and all who mourn his loss. We are grateful for all the ways he helped our state and honor his many years of service to South Carolina and our nation.”
Jane directs national coverage, managing staff and freelance reporters in the nation’s capital and assigning and editing state-specific daily and enterprise stories.
SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
Gov. McMaster Appoints Darline Graham to the U.S. Senate |
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COLUMBIA — Governor Henry McMaster today announced the appointment of Darline Graham to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy created by the passing of U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham. Ms. Graham will be the first woman to represent South Carolina in the U.S. Senate. Darline Graham, a native of Central, S.C., has dedicated her career to public service. Since 2019, she has served as Commissioner of the South Carolina Commission for the Blind, where she has worked to expand opportunities for South Carolinians who are blind or have low vision to achieve employment and independence. "Lindsey Graham recognized the greatness of America, the seriousness of his work, and also the value of human and lighthearted spirit. He understood the hopes, dreams, and needs of his state and delivered for his state every time," said Governor McMaster. "Today, under the law, it is my duty and honor to name someone to serve in the place of this extraordinary man for the remainder of his term. It is my honor to ask his little sister, Darline, to finish his work." Prior to her appointment as Commissioner, Ms. Graham held roles with Clemson University, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, and the South Carolina Department of Vocational Rehabilitation. She has served the people of South Carolina for nearly 30 years. In addition to her full-time role as SCCB Commissioner, Ms. Graham currently serves on the South Carolina State Workforce Development Board and is president-elect of the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind. Ms. Graham earned a bachelor's degree from the College of Charleston, a master's degree in rehabilitation counseling, and is a Certified Public Manager. A wife and mother who lives in Lexington, S.C., Ms. Graham is the sister of U.S. Senator Graham. "Lindsey worked harder than anyone to make our state, country, and world better. He loved his family and loved serving this state and the country. He dedicated his life to our country," said Darline Graham. "It is such a privilege to get to finish some of his important work, and I promise to work hard every day over the next several months to support the president and carry forward the efforts of my brother on behalf of the citizens of South Carolina and the United States." Under Section 7-19-20 of the South Carolina Code of Laws, the governor is authorized to fill a vacancy in the United States Senate by appointment until a successor is elected. Ms. Graham will serve until January 3, 2027, when the new Congress convenes following the November 2026 general election. Because Senator Graham was the South Carolina Republican Party's nominee for the 2026 U.S. Senate election, state law allows the Party to hold a special primary election to nominate a candidate to replace Senator Graham on the ballot. Filing for the special primary election will be open from July 21 through July 28, 2026. The special primary will be held August 11, with a runoff, if necessary, on August 25. The general election will proceed as scheduled on November 3, 2026. Senator Graham represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 2003-2026. Before serving in the Senate, he represented South Carolina's Third Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995-2003. He was also a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives. -###- |
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