The Pentagon is moving to rename a joint military base in South Carolina after Lindsey Graham, a Republican U.S. senator from the state who died July 11.
Joint Base Charleston, housed in North Charleston, South Carolina, is slated to be renamed after Graham, a U.S. Air Force official told Military Times.
Graham spent 33 years in the Air Force as an active-duty staff judge advocate, a South Carolina Air National Guard officer and a senior lawyer in the Air Force Reserve.
He died unexpectedly from an aortic dissection at the age of 71.
Graham was born in Central, South Carolina, and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994 and the Senate in 2002.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted Monday on social media about the base’s renaming. She did not provide further details, only linking a story by The Post and Courier, which first reported on the news.
The South Carolina newspaper reported that a Monday memo, signed by Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, directed staff to begin working with Air Mobility Command and Joint Base Charleston to rename the base to Joint Base Lindsey Graham, citing his “decades of distinguished service to the United States Congress and the United States Air Force.”
The Air Force official who spoke to Military Times confirmed that Meink signed a memo initiating steps to rename the base.
“Today’s announcement to rename Joint Base Charleston in honor of Senator Lindsey Graham is a fitting tribute to a man who dedicated his life to serving our nation and state,” Alan Wilson, South Carolina’s attorney general and Republican nominee for governor, said on social media.
Graham, who was chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, spearheaded efforts to support military funding. In particular, for the Charleston base, he assisted in securing $212 million in funding given to the Coast Guard for enhanced readiness.
Prior to his death, he commemorated the funding, calling it “welcome news.” The Coast Guard is set to use the funds to improve the installation’s pier infrastructure and construct a new medical and dental facility, in addition to other projects.
The news of the base’s renaming comes as lawmakers gathered on Capitol Hill on Tuesday for a memorial service for Graham. Afterward, his casket was moved to the Washington National Cathedral, where President Donald Trump gave remarks at a larger service Tuesday afternoon.
JB Charleston primarily houses the 628th Air Base Wing, 437th Airlift Wing and the reserve 315th Airlift Wing. It has a total force of over 90,000 airmen, sailors, soldiers, marines, coast guardsmen, civilians and retirees across four installations. The flying units are tasked with managing the base’s C-17 cargo fleet.
Cristina Stassis is a reporter covering stories surrounding the defense industry, national security, military/veteran affairs and more. She previously worked as an editorial fellow for Defense News in 2024 where she assisted the newsroom in breaking news across Sightline Media Group.
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