Thad Cochran, 40-year GOP senator from Mississippi, dies at 81

Thad Cochran.
(Image credit: Paul Morigi/Getty Images)

Former Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran has died at 81, his successor Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) said in Thursday press release. The release said Cochran's family "extends its gratitude for the support shown to the Senator by Mississippians over the years," and that he "passed away peacefully early Thursday morning."

Cochran spent 40 years in the Senate, resigning in April 2018 because his health had "become an ongoing challenge." He served as a House member for two terms before being elected to the Senate, making him a congressional mainstay who preceded even the emergence of TV cameras on the Senate floor.

See more

Current GOP senators who'd worked with Cochran soon sent their condolences, with Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) both citing Cochran's time in the U.S. Navy. Before his military and political careers, Cochran also spent time as a cheerleader for the University of Mississippi, which you can watch him describe below. Kathryn Krawczyk

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
See more
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Kathryn Krawczyk

Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.