Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham served in Congress for over three decades, however, public disclosure estimates show he died with a modest net worth compared to many of his longtime Washington colleagues.
The senator died with a net worth of approximately $1.4 million, with congressional disclosures from May suggesting a lower-end estimate of just over $600,000 and an upper estimate of a little more than $2.2 million.
Despite serving in Congress for 31 years, Graham ranked at 294th in wealth among the 535 voting members of Congress, according to data from a prominent research organization.
Graham died at age 71, meaning that his net worth at the end was relatively normal. Individuals between the ages of 65 and 74 have an average net worth of $1.79 million and a median net worth of $409,900, according to available data.
Though transparency experts have long argued that allowing members of Congress to trade individual stocks enables them to abuse non-public information for personal gain, Graham largely avoided this criticism as almost all his assets were mutual funds or government bonds.
As a senator, Graham earned an annual salary of $174,000. While Graham's wealth was humble by D.C. standards, he still came a long way from where he started.
The senator spent his early life living with his sister and parents in a small room attached to their family restaurant in Central, South Carolina, which he helped run. The Graham family later moved into a mobile home.
"It's not a log cabin like Abe Lincoln, but he grew up in a mobile home, which is South Carolina's equivalent of it, I guess," a close acquaintance said.
The senator's parents died in quick succession after he left home for college, leaving him to care for his 13-year-old sister at the age of 22. Graham, an Air Force veteran, was the first in his family to attend university.
Graham died Saturday night following a "brief and sudden illness" after a trip to Ukraine, according to his office. The preliminary cause of death was a ruptured aorta caused by chronic heart disease, as stated by the D.C. medical examiner's office.
