Senator Lindsey Graham's office announced early this morning on its social media platform X that he had "passed away after a short, unexpected illness". A few hours earlier, emergency personnel were called to his Capitol Hill home following a report of a patient in cardiac arrest.

Senator Graham's family did not disclose the cause of his death at 71 and expressed gratitude for prayers.

Graham was a veteran congressman from South Carolina, a prominent figure in the Republican Party. He was elected to the US Senate in 2002. Prior to that, he won election to the House of Representatives in 1994, representing the state's 3rd congressional district.

He was unmarried and resided in Seneca, South Carolina.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham at a press conference in Washington D.C. in 1/2023. Photo: Reuters

Graham was once one of President Donald Trump's strongest critics when Trump first entered politics.

However, when Trump emerged as the leading Republican presidential candidate in 2016, Graham became one of his most loyal political allies. For the past 10 years, he was considered Trump's most effective ally in Congress.

According to his personal website, Graham was a politician with a tough stance on defense, consistently advocating policies in the fight against terrorism to protect long-term US national security interests. He recently made strong statements on the Iran issue, supporting the use of force to end Tehran's nuclear threat.

Before his death, Graham served as Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. He was also a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the Judiciary Committee, and the Environment and Public Works Committee.

Thanh Danh (According to Reuters, AFP)