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# Candidate for U.S. Senate Vows to Return Hagia Sophia to Church
- URL: https://uoj.news/news/87002-candidate-for-us-senate-vows-to-return-hagia-sophia-to-church/
- Published: 2026-04-28T14:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-25T16:15:27.000Z
- Description: Mark Lynch criticized Sen. Lindsey Graham’s inaction on Hagia Sophia’s conversion and proposed economic and legislative steps to restore it to Christian control.
- Author: Tobias Straney
- Tags: #Category: News, US Politics, hagia sophia, Lindsey Graham, South Carolina

**COLUMBIA, SC —** A Republican primary challenge is taking shape in South Carolina as candidate Mark Lynch [sharply criticized](https://x.com/marklynchsc/status/2048216763754520792?s=46) Sen. Lindsey Graham over the 2020 conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque, an issue he framed as a failure of U.S. leadership.

Lynch argued that Graham remained silent during the international dispute and failed to use political leverage against Turkey. He described the change in Hagia Sophia’s status as a major injustice against Christians and pledged to advocate for its return to Christian ownership under the "Greek Orthodox Church." He did not clarify if he meant the Church of Greece or the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, which formerly controlled the religious site.

[![](https://uoj.news/content/images/2025/08/87002-candidate-for-us-senate-vows-to-return-hagia-sophia-to-church-image-d868959f52fa.jpg)On this topicSen. Graham: 'If America Pulls the Plug on Israel, God Will Pull the Plug on Us'](https://uoj.news/news/85017-sen-graham-if-america-pulls-the-plug-on-israel-god-will-pull-the-plug-on-us/)

As part of his platform, Lynch proposed sweeping economic measures, including legislation to ban all U.S. imports from Turkey — totaling more than $17 billion annually — until the site is restored. He said the bill, titled the “Return the Hagia Sophia to the Church Act,” would be introduced with support from Christian clergy across denominations.

Previously, the [UOJ reported](https://uoj.news/news/86951-wonderworking-icon-to-visit-parish-and-monastery-in-south-carolina/) that the St. Anna wonderworking icon visited a parish and monastery in South Carolina.