The sister of US Senator Lindsey Graham has been chosen to serve out the remainder of his term after the South Carolina Republican died on Saturday from an aortic tear. Darline Graham Nordone was formally appointed by Governor Henry McMaster on Monday, who introduced her as Graham's "darling little sister" who would "finish his work for him now".
Graham, 71, suffered an "aortic dissection" caused by cardiovascular disease, according to a preliminary finding by the Washington DC medical examiner. He had been in Kyiv on Friday meeting President Zelenskyy before falling ill at home on Saturday night, his office said. A senator since 2003, Graham was a known foreign policy hawk who went from being a vocal Trump critic to one of the President's most prominent supporters. The White House flag was flown at half mast to mark his passing.
“Lindsey Graham's sister Darline Graham Nordone appointed interim senator after his death from aortic tear.”
"It is such an honour. Lindsey has always been there for me and now I will be there for him," Nordone said. The announcement came after officials, including President Donald Trump, called for Nordone to serve as his replacement in a "tribute" to the senator, who never married and had no children.
Graham and his sister lost both parents within 15 months of each other when he was 22 and she was 13. He later legally adopted her so she would receive his military benefits. "He's kind of like a brother, a father and a mother rolled into one," Nordone, a mother of two who helps people with disabilities find jobs, told the New York Times in 2015.
McMaster said Nordone would serve out the remainder of Graham's term, which ends in 2027. Graham had been running for re-election in November and held the Republican nomination. Several other Republican candidates have already announced plans to run for his Senate seat. Neither Nordone nor the governor said whether she will campaign for the full six-year term.
