BREAKING: GOP Senator John Barrasso Announces Tragic Personal News

Republican Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) shared Thursday morning that Bobbi Brown, his wife since 2008, has passed away.

“After a courageous battle with cancer, Bobbi is now at peace and at home with the Lord. In addition to being a devoted wife and mother, Bobbi was a leader, fierce advocate for Wyoming, and friend to everyone she met,” he wrote in a statement.

Sad news. John Barrasso announces his wife has passed away

“After a courageous battle with cancer, Bobbi is now at peace and at home with the Lord. In addition to being a devoted wife and mother, Bobbi was a leader, fierce advocate for Wyoming, and friend to everyone she met."

— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) January 25, 2024

The Wyoming Republican met Brown shortly after being appointed to the U.S. Senate in 2007 by then-Governor Dave Freudenthal to replace Senator Craig L. Thomas, who died in office earlier that month. Sen. Barrasso had divorced his first wife Linda Nix the previous year.

Brown, who previously survived breast cancer, took a role in Barrasso’s Senate district office back home but resigned following their engagement.

Barrasso, 71, has climbed the Senate ladder in his years wed to Brown. During Republicans’ control of the upper chamber, he has at various times chaired the Senate Environment Committee, Senate Republican Policy Committee, and Senate Indian Affairs Committee. He is a close ally of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and currently serves as a ranking member on the Senate Energy Committee.

With McConnell’s health in doubt over the past year, Washington observers have floated Sen. Barrasso as a possible successor to the Senate GOP’s top post. His familial geniality with colleagues has won him respect on both sides of the aisle and led those like his Wyoming partner, Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), to express support for any future endeavor.

“It’s too soon to discuss the future of Senate Republican leadership,” she told a local outlet in August, but that she will support the 71-year-old Barrasso “in whatever role he chooses to pursue in the Senate.”

“Senator Barrasso has the most conservative voting record among the current Senate Republican leadership, and as the lead Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, his work is pivotal to Wyoming’s interests and to America’s ability to become energy independent once again,” she said. “I am confident that his roles in leadership will continue to benefit our state and our nation for years to come.”

Funeral arrangements for Brown have yet to be announced by Barrasso’s office.