WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has nominated Cissie Graham Lynch, the granddaughter of the late evangelist Billy Graham, to serve as the U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, moving to fill a senior diplomatic post that has lacked a Senate-confirmed occupant since the start of his second term.

The White House announced the nomination Monday, sending Lynch's name to the U.S. Senate for consideration as part of a broader list of nominations. Lynch, whose full legal name is Jane Lynch, is the daughter of Samaritan's Purse Chief Executive Officer Franklin Graham and the granddaughter of Billy Graham, the influential evangelist who died in 2018.

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Lynch addressed the nomination in a post on social media platform X on Tuesday, describing the opportunity in personal terms. "If confirmed by the Senate, please pray that I would serve with excellence and make the most of every opportunity to protect our most precious and fundamental right — and one that far too many people around the world still live without — freedom of religion," she wrote, calling the nomination a "great honor and privilege."

Franklin Graham voiced support for his daughter's nomination in a separate post on X the same day. "Cissie is uniquely qualified for this — she has traveled the world and been a student of this issue for many years," Graham wrote. "She has a broad worldview and knowledge of the issues facing........

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