2026-07-14T18:37:58.539Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/politics/darline-graham-lindsey-graham-senate
已故参议员林赛·格雷厄姆的妹妹达琳·格雷厄姆于周二宣誓就职，以完成兄长在周末突然离世后剩余的参议院任期。
她由南卡罗来纳州州长亨利·麦克马斯特任命，将在参议院任职至2027年1月。格雷厄姆是首位代表南卡罗来纳州的女性联邦参议员。在她完成兄长剩余任期期间，8月11日将举行一场特别初选，以选出这位已故共和党议员的继任者，参加11月的大选，角逐新一届六年任期的参议院席位。
当被美国有线电视新闻网（CNN）问及近况以及此刻感受时，刚在正式宣誓仪式后离开参议院议事厅的格雷厄姆说道：“我还撑得住，感谢你们前来。”
现年62岁的格雷厄姆此前从未担任过民选公职，但在南卡罗来纳州拥有长期的公共服务经历。她曾担任南卡罗来纳州盲人委员会委员，长期致力于服务残障群体。
1976年，她的父母在15个月内相继离世，13岁的她就此成为孤儿。林赛·格雷厄姆是家中首位大学生，也是后备军官训练团成员，他成为了妹妹的法定监护人。
这对兄妹终生关系亲密。2015年，林赛·格雷厄姆宣布参选2016年共和党总统候选人提名后，达琳·格雷厄姆在接受CNN记者达纳·巴斯采访时表示：“即便父母在世时，他们也为经营一家小商铺长时间辛勤工作。即便在那时，他就已经在照顾我了。”
据华盛顿特区法医的初步调查结果，南卡罗来纳州资深共和党议员、唐纳德·特朗普总统盟友林赛·格雷厄姆因主动脉夹层去世，享年71岁。
在美国历史上，州长时常会任命亲属接任亲人的参议院席位，其中最常见的是由配偶接任。前副总统休伯特·汉弗莱的妻子穆里尔·汉弗莱就在丈夫去世后填补了他的参议院席位，1931年哈蒂·卡劳也是在丈夫任内去世后接任了其席位。卡劳后来在1932年凭借自身实力当选参议员，成为首位获此殊荣的女性。
林肯·查菲被任命填补父亲空出的罗德岛州参议院席位。参议员丽莎·穆尔科斯基则在2002年父亲就任阿拉斯加州州长后，由父亲任命接任其参议院席位——这在当时曾引发争议。
周二格雷厄姆宣誓就职时的参议院议事厅，见证了新同僚对她已故兄长的敬重。几乎所有共和党议员席位都座无虚席，许多民主党议员也到场出席。曾与已故参议员格雷厄姆在国际议题上合作过的贾里德·库什纳和特使史蒂夫·维科夫夫坐在旁听席上。长期与林赛·格雷厄姆共事的国务卿马可·卢比奥，以及同为南卡罗来纳州同乡的财政部长斯科特·贝森特也在仪式期间与参议员们一同坐在议事厅 floor（此处应为议事厅席位）上。南卡罗来纳州的多名众议院议员也到场出席，包括共和党众议员拉尔夫·诺曼、乔·威尔逊以及民主党众议员吉姆·克莱伯恩。
参议院民主党领袖查克·舒默在仪式开始前与达琳·格雷厄姆进行了交谈，共和党参议员凯蒂·布里特和蒂姆·斯科特陪同她走向宣誓台，参议员查克·格拉斯利在此为她主持宣誓仪式。旁听席上的格雷厄姆家人情绪激动，参议员乔尼·恩斯特也手持纸巾，同样情绪动容。宣誓完成后，议事厅全体起立鼓掌，布里特和斯科特陪同格雷厄姆前往她已故兄长的办公桌。斯科特将格雷厄姆宣誓时使用的《圣经》放在桌上，并将手在圣经上停留片刻。
参议院共和党领袖约翰·图恩和参议院共和党党鞭约翰·巴拉索与格雷厄姆握手后，其他参议员纷纷上前自我介绍、寒暄致意。他们最终排成两队，格雷厄姆轮流与两队议员打招呼。在参议院开始就推进年度国防政策法案进行投票时，议员们仍在轮流与她交谈。
本文已更新补充更多细节。
CNN记者埃里克·布拉德纳对本文亦有贡献。
Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, sworn in to serve remainder of his Senate term
2026-07-14T18:37:58.539Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/14/politics/darline-graham-lindsey-graham-senate
Darline Graham, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s younger sister, was sworn into the Senate on Tuesday to serve out the remainder of her brother’s term after his sudden death over the weekend.
She was appointed to the seat by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster and will remain in the Senate until January 2027. Graham is the first woman to represent South Carolina in the Senate. As she serves out the remainder of her brother’s term, a special primary election will take place August 11 to replace the late Republican lawmaker in November’s general election to determine who will next hold the seat for the upcoming six-year term.
Asked by CNN how she is doing and what the moment is like for her, Graham said, “Hanging in there, appreciate you being here,” as she left the Senate floor following her official swearing in.
Graham, 62, has not previously held elected office but has a long history of public service in the state of South Carolina. She has served as a commissioner for the South Carolina Commission for the Blind and has long worked with people with disabilities.
After their parents died within 15 months of each other, she became orphaned at age 13 in 1976. Lindsey Graham — the first in his family to attend college, and a member of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps — became his sister’s legal guardian.
The siblings were close their entire lives, Darline Graham told CNN’s Dana Bash in a 2015 interview after her brother launched his bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. “Even when my parents were alive, they worked really long, hard hours running a small business. So even then, he was a caregiver to me,” she said.
Lindsey Graham, a longtime Republican from South Carolina and ally of President Donald Trump, died following an aortic dissection, according to a preliminary finding from the Washington, DC, medical examiner. He was 71.
Throughout US history, governors have at times chosen family members to take over Senate seats for their loved ones, frequently with a spouse picked to step in. Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey’s wife is one example; Muriel Humphrey filled her husband’s Senate seat after he passed away, as did Hattie Caraway after her husband died in office in 1931. Caraway went on to become the first woman elected to the Senate in her own right in 1932.
Lincoln Chafee was appointed to fill his father’s Rhode Island Senate seat. Sen. Lisa Murkowski was appointed by her own father to take over his Senate seat after he became Alaska’s governor in 2002 — a controversial decision at the time.
The Senate chamber during Graham’s swearing in on Tuesday was a testament to the respect her new colleagues held for her late brother. Almost every Republican seat was filled, and many Democrats attended as well. Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, both of whom had worked with the late Sen. Graham on international issues, sat in the galleries. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a longtime colleague of Lindsey Graham, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, a fellow South Carolinian, joined senators on the floor during the ceremony. Several House members from South Carolina also attended, including GOP Reps. Ralph Norman and Joe Wilson as well as Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer spoke with Darline Graham just before the ceremony, and GOP Sens. Katie Britt and Tim Scott escorted her to the dais, where Sen. Chuck Grassley administered her oath of office. Graham’s family in the gallery was emotional, as was Sen. Joni Ernst, who held tissues in her hand. The chamber rose to a standing ovation after the oath was administered, and Britt and Scott led Graham to her late brother’s desk. Scott placed the Bible Graham had used during her swearing in on the desk, resting his hand on it for a moment.
After Senate GOP Leader John Thune and Senate GOP Whip John Barrasso had shaken Graham’s hand, other senators crowded around to introduce themselves and say hello. They eventually formed two lines, with Graham alternating between each to greet her new colleagues. As the Senate began voting on advancing the annual defense policy package, senators were still taking turns to speak with her.
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Eric Bradner contributed to this report
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