U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) was killed in a car accident Wednesday afternoon. She was 58 years old.
The crash happened in Elkhart County when a “northbound passenger car traveled left of center and collided head on with a southbound vehicle,” WSBT reporter Erica Finke tweeted. “Walorski, Zachary Potts with the St. Joseph County Republican Party, and Walorski’s comm. director Emma Thompson all passed away.”
“The northbound vehicle driver, Edith Schmucker, died as well,” she added.
The northbound vehicle driver, Edith Schmucker, died as well.
The investigation is continuing at this time.#RIP to everyone involved in this horrifying crash.
— Erica Finke TV (@EricaFinkeTV) August 3, 2022
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) confirmed the news on Twitter by sharing a statement from Walorski’s office.
“Dean Swihart, Jackie’s husband, was just informed by the Elkhart County Sheriff’s office that Jackie was killed in a car accident this afternoon,” the statement said. “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.”
Walorski was first elected to U.S. Congress in 2012 after serving three terms in the Indiana Statehouse where she was Assistant Floor Leader.
Walorski was previously a television news reporter and also spent four years as a missionary with her husband Romania where they helped provide essential items to children living in poverty.
While representing Indiana’s 2nd District in Congress this term, Walorski served on the House Ways and Means Committee and as the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Worker and Family Support; she also served as the ranking member of the House Ethics Committee, according to her congressional website. She previously served on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, the House Budget Committee (113th Congress) and the House Agriculture Committee (114th Congress), where she chaired the Nutrition Subcommittee.
“I am devastated to learn of the passing of my close friend, Congresswoman Jackie Walorski. She was an incredible public servant for Hoosiers and leader within the Republican Party,” Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement. “Jackie and I would often travel on the same flight from Detroit to DC. She was an absolute firecracker and I feel blessed to have been able to spend so much time with her. The entire Republican National Committee is praying for her family, as well as the families of the two staff who were also tragically killed.”
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