Longest-serving US representative dies

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Don Young, the longest-serving US representative, died Friday at 88, his office reported. 

Young was an Alaska Representative in the US Congress and was re-elected 24 times.

“It’s with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we announce Congressman Don Young, the Dean of the House and revered champion for Alaska, passed away today while traveling home to Alaska to be with the state and people that he loved,” announced a statement by Young's office.
 
Young's ex-chief of staff Ferguson told the Daily News on Friday that the late representative's “goal” at the time of his passing was to help flip the US House to Republican control.

The late representative began his career in the US House of Representatives during the Nixon administration, when he lost a special election to Democratic incumbent Nick Begich, but ultimately took power after his opponent was declared legally dead following a plane crash in late 1972.

Although Young opposed former US President Donald Trump's campaign, he voted twice against his impeachment.

In November 2021, Trump described Young and other representatives as “RINOs, sellouts, and known losers” that should be voted out in primary elections.

Weeks later, Young responded by telling the former President to “shut up”, however, he still believed Trump’s policy was “so good”.

After being among one of 13 House Republicans for voting in favor of US President Joe Biden's passed infrastructure law, Young was denounced by fellow Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene as a "traitor”.

According to the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska law states that Republican Governor “call a special election to fill Young’s seat within three months, and no sooner than two months from the date of his death.”