Who was Don Young? Tributes pour in as longest-serving Alaskan Congressman dies aged 88

Don Young, Alaska’s longest-serving Congressman, passed away on Friday, March 18, 2022. He was 88 at the time of his passing. News of his demise was confirmed in an official statement by his office.

The statement read,

“It’s with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we announce Congressman Don Young (R-AK), 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. His beloved wife Anne was by his side.”

As per Huffpost, Young’s longtime friend and former chief of staff Jack Ferguson also announced his passing. He said,

“I just got a call from Alaska Airlines. They told me that Don died in Concourse B. I was so shocked I didn’t even ask if that was here in Anchorage or in Seattle.”

No immediate cause of Don Young’s death was made available to the public. However, his office told the Associated Press that a detailed plan for the celebration of Young’s life would be announced in the coming days.

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A look back into the life of Don Young

Don Young was elected to Congress in 1973 and re-elected 24 times (Image via Chris Maddaloni/Getty Images)

Don Young was born on June 9, 1933, in Meridian, California and grew up on a farm. He earned an associate's degree in education from Yuba College in 1952 and a bachelor's degree in teaching from Chico State College in 1958.

Young served in the US Army’s 41st Tank Battalion between 1955 and 1957 before moving to Alaska in 1959. In 2016, he told the Associated Press that he decided to move north after being inspired by Jack London’s Call of the Wild, a novel his father often read to him:

“I can’t stand heat, and I was working on a ranch and I used to dream of some place cold, and no snakes and no poison oak.”

The congressman initially settled in Fort-Yukon City, Alaska and made a living with jobs in construction, fishing, trapping, and gold mining. He also earned a mariner's license to operate a tugboat to deliver products and supplies to villages along the Yukon River.

He even taught fifth-grade students at the local Bureau of Indian Affairs elementary school during winters. It was also in Alaska that Young met his first wife Lu, who later motivated him to run for Congress. The pair tied the knot in 1963 and welcomed their two daughters together.

Don Young began his political career in 1964 after being elected mayor of Fort Yukon, a role he served in between 1964 and 1968. That same year, he also ran for the Alaska House of Representatives but finished in tenth place.

In 1966, Young was elected to the State House and re-elected again in 1968. Meanwhile, he also served in the Alaska House of Representatives between 1967 and 1971. In 1970, the politician ran for the Alaska Senate and was elected to the two-member District I. He served his term from 1971 to 1973.

Young finally ran for Congress in 1972 against U.S. Representative Nick Begich of the Democratic Party. Nearly three weeks before the election, the latter became the victim of a fatal plane crash.

Despite being re-elected, Begich's body remained undiscovered and he was declared legally dead in December 1972. Following his demise, Young won a special election in March 1973 and held his position until his death on Friday.

The Congressman was re-elected to the position 24 times, becoming the most senior U.S. Representative. He was also the last member to be in office since 1970s following Jim Sensenbrenner’s retirement.

After his 1973 election, Young was honored as the “Freshman Congressman of the Year” by his colleagues. From 1995 to 2001, the politician served as the Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.

He was also the Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee between 2001 and 2007. Young later returned to lead the Resources Committee in the 110th Congress.

The former educator was also appointed the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs (IIANA) in the 112th Congress, a role he held until 2017.

Following his successful 6-year term as Chairman of the IIANA Subcommittee, Don Young was declared Chairman Emeritus of the full House Committee on Natural Resources.

Prior to his death, he served as the most senior Republican on both the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and House Natural Resources Committee.

According to his official biography, Young served as the “Congressman for All Alaska” and loved his position as the only Alaskan Representative in Congress. He reportedly served his role with the vision to “provide citizens with the opportunity for a better life” not just for the present but also the future.

On a personal front, Young was married to his first wife Lu for 46 years until her death in 2009. Several years later, the politician found love again and married Fairbanks-area flight nurse Anne Garland Walton in 2015.

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Twitter mourns the loss of Dan Young

Twitter remembered Don Young after his passing (Image via Scott J. Ferrell/Getty Images)

As the longest serving Alaskan Congressman, Don Young was a prominent figure in the U.S. political scene. His political career spanned across six decades and also made him the longest-serving Republican member of the House of Representatives and Congress.

Young represented Alaska for nearly 49 years of his life. Following news of Young’s sudden demise, several of his fellow politicians, colleagues and followers took to Twitter to mourn the loss of the politician.

As tributes continue to pour in online, it is certain that Don Young will be missed by his family, friends, associates, contemporaries, and admirers. He is survived by his second wife Anne, his biological daughters Dawn and Joni, and his grandchildren.