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On Wednesday, Jackie Walorski, a 58-year-old Republican Representative for the State of Indiana, was killed in a car accident along with 2 of her team members.
According to CBS, Jackie Walorski and her team were traveling in an SUV when they collided with another vehicle at approximately 12:30 pm. Walorski died along with 28-year-old communications director Emma Thomson and 27-year-old district director Zachary Potts. The driver of the other vehicle also died at the scene.
In an official statement, House minority leader Kevin McCarthy spoke of Walorski's tragic death.
He said:
"Dean Swihart, Jackie's husband, was just informed by Elkhart County Sheriff's office that Jackie was killed in a car accident this afternoon."
He continued:
"She has returned home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Please keep her family in your thoughts and prayers. We will have no further comment at this time."
The Eckhart County Sheriff's office is currently investigating the crash.
All there is to know about Jackie Walorski
Jackie Walorski entered politics in 2004 after working as a television reporter for WSBT-TV, while also operating a Christian charity foundation in Romania for four years. Upon her return to the US, she became a hopeful for the Indiana House of Representatives, eventually attaining the position and beginning a long career with the Republicans.
During her time serving as a representative, Walorski was noted for passing laws requiring voter ID checks during elections and legislation impeding identity theft. She was also one of many Republicans who voted against the impeachment of Donald Trump in 2021.
Indiana senator Todd Young mourned the loss of Walorski in an online Tweet.
He wrote:
"She served Indiana in the statehouse and the Congress with integrity and principle for nearly two decades and will be deeply missed."
NPR reported that Walorski's final election was in 2022 when she won as Republican Primary in the 2nd Congressional District.
In a statement, former vice-president Mike Pence celebrated Walorski's memory.
He said:
"She served Indiana in the statehouse and the Congress with integrity and principle for nearly two decades and will be deeply missed."
In an official statement, President Joe Biden described her as a dedicated political worker, adding that this was something he recognized even though he is a Democrat.
He said:
"(Jackie Walorski) spent a lifetime serving the community that she grew up in. We may have represented different parties and disagreed on many issues, but she was respected by members of both parties for her work."
Jackie Walorski left behind her husband, Dean Swihart, a teacher in Penn Township, Indiana.
