The US Congress is in mourning -
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Republican congressman Ron Wright has died of Covid-19, his team announced on Monday, becoming the first member on Capitol Hill to succumb to the virus.
The 67-year-old Texas elected representative died on Sunday.
"During the previous two weeks, Ron and (his wife, Editor's note) Susan had been hospitalized" in Dallas "after being infected with Covid-19," his spokespersons said in a statement.
The Texan had been treated for cancer "in recent years," they say.
On January 21, Ron Wright announced that he had tested positive for the coronavirus "after having been in contact with an individual having the virus last week".
The United States, the most bereaved country in the world
"I feel mild symptoms but in general I am well and I will continue to work (...) from home this week," he added in a statement, calling for compliance with the precautionary instructions given by the American health authorities to combat the spread of the virus.
Ron Wright thus becomes the first of 535 elected officials sitting in Congress (435 in the House and 100 in the Senate) to succumb to the disease.
A parliamentarian elected to the House in November, Luke Letlow, died of Covid-19 in December, before taking office in early January.
Elected in Louisiana, he was 41 years old.
The United States is the most bereaved country in the world by the pandemic, with more than 460,000 dead.
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