Former U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl announced he is stepping back from public life after being diagnosed with a neurological disease that causes dementia.
Quoting former President Ronald Reagan, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 1994, Kyl said he is entering “the sunset of his life” and is optimistic about the future of the country and state.
“My family and I now head down a path filled with moments of joy and increasing difficulties,” Kyl said. “I am grateful beyond expression for their love and support, in these coming days as in all the days of my life. Despite this diagnosis, I remain a very fortunate man.”
Kyl, an Arizona Republican, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986 and served in that chamber for nearly a decade before he won election to the U.S. Senate in 1994. He left office in 2013 before briefly returning to the Senate after former Gov. Doug Ducey appointed Kyl to replace his former seatmate, Sen. John McCain, who passed away in 2018.
“My father served in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing a farming district in Iowa where I grew up,” Kyl said in a statement. “So, it was a double honor when the people of Arizona’s Congressional District 4 elected me to represent them in the House. And then, subsequently, for the people of the whole state to entrust me to serve them and the country in the U.S. Senate.”
After his first Senate stint, Kyl became a lobbyist, creating some concern among critics when Ducey appointed him to the Senate in 2018. He has represented a broad spectrum of clients, including defense manufacturers like Northrop Grumman and young undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, often called “Dreamers.”
An insider reacts
Jim Heath, a political analyst based in Lake Havasu City, said Kyl has long been regarded as a decent and intelligent man who was instrumental in the difficult work of lawmaking.
“Overall, most people who understand how government works and how legislation works, understand that Kyl was always in the room,” Heath said. “He was always with a group of senators who were trying to move the football forward.”
Kyl represented Arizona alongside the late John McCain.
Heath said Kyl was happy to work in the background, beyond the national spotlight that McCain often drew for his outspoken brand of maverick politics.
Full statement from Sen. Kyl
"I was blessed to represent the people of Arizona in Congress and to have numerous other opportunities to contribute to the political and civic life of our nation and state.
"However, the time has come for me to withdraw from public life. I have been diagnosed with a neurological disease manifesting as dementia.
"I came to Arizona as an 18-year-old freshman enrolled in the University of Arizona. I fell in love with the state and with my wife Caryll, whom I met at the U of A. Caryll worked as a nurse to help put me through law school. We moved to Phoenix to practice law and raise a family.
"My father served in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing a farming district in Iowa where I grew up. So, it was a double honor when the people of Arizona’s Congressional District 4 elected me to represent them in the House. And then, subsequently, for the people of the whole state to entrust me to serve them and the country in the U.S. Senate.
"In a letter to the American people in similar circumstances, Ronald Reagan wrote that he was headed into 'the sunset of my life.' Yet, he expressed confidence that, for America, there would 'always be a bright dawn ahead.' I share Reagan’s confidence about the future, for the country and for our state.
"My family and I now head down a path filled with moments of joy and increasing difficulties. I am grateful beyond expression for their love and support, in these coming days as in all the days of my life. Despite this diagnosis, I remain a very fortunate man.
"I am also comforted by knowing that my Redeemer lives. We will not be walking this path alone."
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