The District of Columbia Medical Examiner's Office has released preliminary findings on the cause of death of South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. He is believed to have died as a result of aortic dissection associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, Fox News reported.
Graham's office said Sunday that he died after a “short and sudden illness.” According to NBC News, emergency responders arrived at his home on Saturday night following a cardiac arrest call.
Photos that appeared online show doctors carrying a man out on a stretcher and placing him in an ambulance. The senator was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but it was not possible to save him.
Photos show Lindsey Graham being wheeled from his residence as EMS personnel provide first aid.
Source: @TMZ pic.twitter.com/KjS6NPLMQP
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 12, 2026
One of the senator's staff members told NBC News that in recent days there was nothing to indicate that his health was worsening. Shortly before his death, on Friday, Graham returned from Ukraine. The unexpected death and the circumstances of the last days of his life caused a wave of speculation about a possible criminal component of the incident.
Megan Mobbs, the daughter of Keith Kellogg, US President Donald Trump's former special envoy for Ukraine, called for a thorough investigation.
“In light of the tragic death of Senator Graham, 'cardiac arrest' is not a complete answer. Cardiac arrest explains how his life ended, but does not answer the question of why the heart stopped working. Given the existing threats, the nature of the United States’ adversaries, and the prominent role of Senator Graham in confronting them, the American public has the right to expect complete certainty,” Mobbs wrote.
According to her, the senator’s death could well have occurred from natural causes, but “the geopolitical context and the opponents with whom he fiercely fought provide grounds for additional questions in order to finally rule out the most insidious version.”
“Russia is particularly successful in areas where destabilization is achieved through uncertainty. The lack of answers creates precisely the atmosphere of uncertainty, suspicion and division that Moscow has been learning for years to use to its advantage,” she noted.
Two federal law enforcement sources told Fox News that so far there are no signs of foul play. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Cash Patel said on Sunday that the agency is assisting local authorities in determining the cause of the incident.
The District of Columbia Medical Examiner's Office, meanwhile, stressed that the autopsy has not yet been completed.
“The cause of death will be listed as undetermined on the death certificate until all toxicological and microscopic studies are completed. After this, the document will be updated, indicating the final cause of death,” the message says.
Lindsey Graham was a proponent of a hard foreign policy towards Russia and Iran. He represented South Carolina in the upper house of Congress for more than 20 years and intended to run again in the midterm elections in November. RTVI told more about his past and the reaction of world leaders to the news of his death.
