Senate Passes Graham-Named Russia-Iran Sanctions Bill 86-12

A bipartisan supermajority advancing the measure on the same day as Graham's funeral service signals durable Senate support for Russia and Iran sanctions, though the bill's fate in the House and...

The U.S. Senate cleared a procedural hurdle Tuesday on the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, advancing the legislation by an 86-to-12 vote, according to reporting by the New York Post citing the floor vote record. The bill, named posthumously for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), had been stalled in the upper chamber prior to Tuesday's action. The vote occurred hours after Graham's funeral service was held at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

The 86-12 procedural vote represents a bipartisan margin, clearing the 60-vote threshold required to advance legislation past a Senate filibuster. The identities of the 12 senators who voted against advancing the measure are not confirmed in the available source material; the full roll call, which would identify each vote by senator and party, is a public record accessible through the Congressional Record and the Senate's official vote database at senate.gov.

The bill specifically targets Russia and Iran with sanctions. The precise mechanisms, scope of asset designations, and waiver authorities included in the legislation are not detailed in the available source material. The full text of the bill, as introduced and as it stands following any amendments, is a public record available through Congress.gov and would specify which entities, sectors, or individuals face penalties and under what conditions the executive branch may modify or lift them.

The legislation now faces consideration in the House of Representatives, where its prospects are not established by the available source material. House leadership scheduling decisions, any companion bill status, and the positions of relevant committee chairs — including the House Foreign Affairs Committee — are unknown at this time and would be reflected in House floor and committee scheduling records published by the House Majority Leader's office and on congress.gov.

What remains unknown includes: the full list of 12 dissenting senators and their stated rationale, whether the White House has indicated a position on the bill, the specific sanction targets named in the legislation, and whether any amendments were adopted prior to Tuesday's procedural vote. The Congressional Record for July 29, 2026, and the bill's full text on Congress.gov would answer each of these questions.