The late Sen. Lindsey Graham was not among Congress’ richest lawmakers, even after more than 30 years on Capitol Hill and a prominent position in Republican leadership.
Graham, 71, died Saturday night with an estimated net worth of nearly $1.5 million. That placed the South Carolina senator, who rose from modest beginnings, at 294th in wealth among the 535 voting members of Congress, according to figures compiled by Quiver Quantitative.
By comparison, Graham’s fortune was small next to that of the wealthiest member of Congress, Sen. James Justice (R-WV), whose net worth is estimated by Quiver Quantitative at more than $664 million.
Both senators received the standard Senate salary of $174,000 per year.
Although Graham spent 31 years in Congress and became one of the Senate’s most influential Republican figures, he remained closely associated with the working-class background that shaped his early life.
Graham was raised in Central, South Carolina, in a blue-collar household. His parents operated the Sanitary Cafe, a restaurant and pool hall, and Graham spent part of his childhood living in a room directly behind the family business.
The late senator often pointed to that upbringing — including the time he spent helping his parents keep the restaurant running — as a driving force behind his decision to become the first in his family to attend college.
While he was enrolled at the University of South Carolina, tragedy struck when both of his parents died from illness within a 15-month span. Graham later legally adopted his 13-year-old sister and helped ensure she completed her education.
After earning his law degree, Graham joined the Air Force and then made his debut in Congress as a representative in 1995 and then a senator in 2003, where he led the GOP’s foreign policy issues.
Graham’s net wealth remained relatively consistent over the past decade, with the senator mostly trading in mutual funds and corporate bond funds.
The senator, who never married and had no children, also owned a townhouse near the Capitol that was estimated at $890,000 in value, as well as a home in Seneca, South Carolina.
During the lead-up to his failed 2016 presidential bid, The Center for Responsive Politics group ranked Graham among the least wealthy members of the Senate for 10 straight years.
Graham died of a “brief and sudden illness” on Saturday evening following a trip to Ukraine, according to his office. His preliminary cause of death was a ruptured aorta brought on by chronic heart disease, the DC medical examiner’s office found.
