New Jersey congressman Donald Payne Jr. died Wednesday following a lengthy hospitalization after a heart attack.
The Newark Democratic representative was hospitalized earlier this month for a cardiac episode stemming from diabetes complications.
“With his signature bowtie, big heart, and tenacious spirit, Donald embodied the very best of public service,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement. “As a former union worker and toll collector, he deeply understood the struggles our working families face, and he fought valiantly to serve their needs, every single day. That purpose was the light that guided him through his early years as Newark City Council President and during his tenure on the Essex County Board of Commissioners. And it guided him still through his more than a decade of service in Congress.”
Payne, 65, was first elected to Congress in 2012 after his father — the state’s first Black congressman — died of cancer.
Payne’s death comes the day GOP Rep. Mike Gallagher officially resigns his seat, making the narrow Republican majority in the House 217-212. Speaker Mike Johnson remains in political peril as a potential motion to vacate from his own party members looms.
This is a developing story.
