Rep. Ron Wright (R., Texas) died Sunday after contracting Covid-19, according to his campaign office, becoming the first member of Congress to die from the coronavirus while in office.
Rep. Ron Wright (R., Texas) died at age 67 two weeks after he was admitted to Baylor Hospital in Dallas. (Image by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/Getty Images)
Mr. Wright’s death at the age of 67 came two weeks after he was admitted to Baylor Hospital in Dallas, his campaign said. He said on Jan. 21 that he had tested positive for Covid-19 after coming into contact with someone who was infected. He was also being treated for cancer, his office said.
“As friends, family, and many of his constituents will know, Ron maintained his quick wit and optimism until the very end,” Wright’s office said. “Despite years of painful, sometimes debilitating treatment for cancer, Ron never lacked the desire to get up and go to work, to motivate those around him, or to offer fatherly advice.”
Wright is the first sitting member of Congress to die after contracting Covid. Luke Letlow, a Louisiana Republican elected to the House in November, died a month later from Covid-19 complications, before he took office.
