The South Carolina senator suffered a tear in the inner wall of his body’s main artery, linked to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease; final determination awaits toxicology and microscopic testing

Graham's death sparks questions on cardiac arrest that is caused by an electrical malfunction in the heart that disrupts its pumping action. The heart then stops beating.

The South Carolina senator’s office said the 71-year-old died after a “brief and sudden illness.”