Lindsey Graham among least wealthy in Congress despite decades-long political career

Despite spending more than three decades in Congress and rising to become one of the Senate Republican Party's most influential figures, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham never amassed the fortune often associated with Washington's political elite.

According to financial data compiled by Quiver Quantitative, Graham's estimated net worth stood at roughly $1.5 million at the time of his death, ranking him 294th out of the 535 voting members of Congress. The ranking puts Graham far behind many of his Senate colleagues, including West Virginia Sen. Jim Justice, whose estimated net worth exceeds $664 million despite earning the same $174,000 annual Senate salary.

Graham's relatively modest finances began with his upbringing in rural South Carolina. Raised in the small town of Central, Graham grew up working in his family's Sanitary Cafe restaurant and pool hall, where his parents worked long hours to make ends meet. While attending the University of South Carolina, Graham suffered a devastating personal tragedy when both of his parents died within 15 months of each other. He became the legal guardian of his 13-year-old sister while finishing college before earning his law degree and serving in the US Air Force.

Graham entered Congress after winning election to the House of Representatives in 1994 before moving to the Senate in 2002, where he became one of the Republican Party's leading voices on national security, foreign policy, judicial nominations, and military affairs. Unlike many longtime members of Congress, Graham's financial disclosures showed relatively few high-value investments. Much of his portfolio consisted of mutual funds and bond funds, with his largest assets being a townhouse near the U.S. Capitol valued at approximately $890,000 and a home in Seneca, South Carolina. During his 2016 presidential campaign, the Center for Responsive Politics ranked Graham among the Senate's least wealthy members for ten consecutive years.

Graham, who never married and had no children, died Saturday at the age of 71, after a political career spanning more than three decades.