Family says former Arizona senator ‘belonged to all of Arizona’
Between his Senate terms, former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl worked as a Washington lobbyist, helping guide Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh through his confirmation to the post. Kyl also lobbied for young immigrants who were illegally brought to the United States as children after President Donald Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in 2017.
The Supreme Court ruled against the Trump administration’s attempt to phase out the program in 2020.
Kyl, a Republican, represented Arizona in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1987 to 1995 and in the U.S. Senate from 1995 to 2013. He returned to the upper chamber in 2018 for four months to complete the term of the late U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
Kyl died Thursday at 84 from complications related to a neurological disease, his family announced.
In December, Kyl announced he had been diagnosed with dementia and said he would withdraw from public life.
“We know that Jon belonged to all of Arizona, a state he loved and explored with vigor, curiosity, and wonder,” Kyl’s family said in a statement. “Serving his state and nation in Congress was a privilege and responsibility he honored and respected. We are grateful for his full and meaningful public life.”
Kyl is survived by his wife, Carol, two children and four grandchildren. Memorial services will be announced later, the family said.