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2mo ago

Former Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl Discloses Dementia, Steps Back From Public Life

The 83-year-old Arizonan spent nearly three decades in Congress, rising to Senate minority whip.

FILE - In this Sept. 5, 2018, photo, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., waits to be sworn in as a U.S. Senator by Vice President Mike Pence in at the Old Senate Chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
Former Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., vice chair, Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States, testifies during the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the "findings of the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States," in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 19, 2023.
FILE - Former Arizona Republican Sen. Jon Kyl, left, and Bruce Babbitt, right, former Arizona Republican governor and secretary of the Interior, wave to the crowd as they are recognized during Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey's state of the state address Monday, Jan. 14, 2019, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin,File)
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (left) and Sen. Jon Kyl

Overview

  • Kyl announced he has a neurological disease manifesting as dementia and said he will withdraw from public life, in a statement released by his office via PR Newswire that requested no further family comment.
  • He served in the House from 1987 to 1995 and in the Senate from 1995 to 2013, became the Senate’s No. 2 Republican, and was appointed in 2018 to temporarily fill the seat left by the death of Sen. John McCain.
  • After leaving the Senate, Kyl joined Covington & Burling as a lobbyist and helped guide the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
  • Leaders across Arizona and beyond offered support, with messages from Sen. Mark Kelly, Gov. Katie Hobbs, former Gov. Doug Ducey, and the University of Arizona.
  • Reports underscored his influence on Western water policy, with Arizona State University’s Kyl Center for Water Policy citing his role in tribal water rights settlements and regional negotiations.