Three male escorts in a new documentary have alleged that late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham paid them for sexual encounters, including one who says he was 17 at the time.
The CLOSETocracy, produced by Swamp Watch Studios and Tystnaden Films and released by the left-wing Young Turks network, features testimony from men who say Graham paid them for sexual encounters in Arizona and Washington, D.C. The allegations have not been independently corroborated.
One of the men, identified in the documentary as Kelvin, alleges he met Graham at a property in Arizona in 2001, when he was 17. He claims Graham paid him $120 for the encounter.
“My name is Kelvin. I had sex with Lindsey Graham when I was 17,” he says in the documentary.
Newsweek has reached out to Graham's sister, Republican Senator Darline Graham, for comment.
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Kelvin alleges the encounter took place at a friend’s home belonging to Graham that was under construction. He described the property as appearing staged and compared it to a set for “very extreme” pornography.
According to Kelvin, Graham repeatedly asked his age after getting a closer look at his face.
“You’re 17, aren’t you?” Kelvin recalled Graham asking.
Kelvin said he insisted he was 18 in an attempt to reassure Graham.
“I just need you to tell me how old you are,” Graham allegedly said at one point, according to Kelvin’s account.
“I said, ‘OK, I am 18 years old,’ ” Kelvin recalled.
“I felt powerless in arguing with him about it,” he added.
Kelvin described the encounter as involving sexual activity and alleged that Graham struggled to maintain an erection before eventually masturbating. He said Graham subsequently told him to get dressed and indicated that he had left $120 near a rafter.
“He didn’t really want to talk to me very much at that point. And then I was out the door,” Kelvin said.
Reflecting on the encounter, Kelvin questioned what might have happened had he appeared older.
“I feel like if I looked older—how would the scene play out?” he asked. “If we had kept going, what would it have turned into?”
Kelvin also described himself as a vulnerable teenager who turned to escorting at 16 because he was so poor he could not afford clothes.
The documentary also features two other men who describe alleged sexual encounters with Graham.
A man identified as Cory recounts an encounter in which he says Graham expressed a preference for being degraded.
“He’s like, ‘I really like to be degraded. I like the more degrading, the better,’ ” Cory says in the footage.
Another man, identified as Jesse, alleges he had a sexual encounter with Graham at a hotel in Washington, D.C., in 2012.
“I am Jesse and I had sex with Lindsey Graham. I told multiple people about the encounter when it happened," he said in the film.
Jesse said he recognized Graham from political advertisements when they met and describes sexual activity that included oral sex and mutual masturbation. He alleges he received $260 for the encounter.
The documentary’s accounts could not be independently verified.
Arizona's Age of Consent
Arizona sets the age of consent at 18, and minors cannot legally consent.
Under Arizona Revised Statutes §13-1405, sexual conduct with a minor happens when someone knowingly engages in sexual intercourse or oral sexual contact with a person under 18 years old.
The consequences depend on both individuals’ ages and what took place. If the minor is under 15, the charge becomes a Class 2 felony, which carries mandatory prison time and long-term penalties.
Questions About Graham’s Record on LGBTQ+ Rights
Beyond the allegations in the documentary, The CLOSETocracy examines Graham’s political record and his positions on LGBTQ+ issues during his decades in public office.
Graham, a Republican who represented South Carolina in the U.S. Senate from 2003 until his death in July 2026, publicly defended marriage between a man and a woman and opposed efforts to establish same-sex marriage protections through constitutional measures. His positions on gays serving in the military and other LGBTQ+ issues are also examined in the documentary.
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The documentary also suggests that Darline Graham, who took over her late brother's senate seat after his death, was aware of his sexuality.
"I don't think there's any way that Darline Graham doesn't know about any of this," Cory said in the documentary.
In a clip featured in the film, a journalist attempts to ask Darline about some of the claims in the documentary.
"Some allegations have come out about your late brother using gay escorts."
“I’m not even gonna entertain that question!” Darline responded before walking away.