Arizona senator shaped water policy

Jon Kyl, who represented Arizona in Congress for nearly three decades, died Wednesday at 84 from a neurological disorder. He had withdrawn from public life in December 2025 after announcing a dementia diagnosis.

A workhorse, not a showoff

Former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey called Kyl a 'workhorse' among Washington's 'showhorses,' noting he'd read bills in coach seats on planes rather than seek the spotlight.

“If you saw him on the plane, he was sitting in the aisle, in coach, and he was reading.”

Groundwater code transformed Arizona

Before his first House election in 1987, Kyl helped shape Arizona's 1980 groundwater code as a lawyer. The first-of-its-kind framework regulated groundwater management in the drought-stricken state, focusing on Phoenix and Tucson.

Tribal water rights settlement

In 2004, Kyl authored legislation providing one of the largest tribal water rights settlements. After a decades-long battle, the Gila River Indian Community gained enough water to fill nearly 313,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools annually.

“There wasn't anybody else who could do that water deal. And it had to be done.”

Senate minority whip and leader

Kyl rose to leadership during his last full Senate term when Republican colleagues selected him as minority whip. He served in both the House and Senate across nearly three decades.

Brief return to fill McCain's seat

After retiring in 2013 to become a lobbyist, Kyl returned to Congress in 2018 when Gov. Ducey appointed him to fill the vacancy left by Sen. John McCain. He stayed less than four months.

Guided Kavanaugh's confirmation

As a lobbyist, Kyl helped guide the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. When he returned to Congress in 2018, he served as Kavanaugh's chief Sherpa, the informal term for a nominee's Senate guide.

From Reagan era to Trump

Kyl's career spanned from Ronald Reagan's presidency to Donald Trump's first term, watching his Republican party undergo drastic transformation. He backed border fence legislation and later supported a bipartisan citizenship bill that ultimately failed.

Legacy of preventing bad outcomes

Kyl once reflected that many of his better achievements were in preventing bad things from happening rather than forcing good things to happen. Arizona State University's Kyl Center for Water Policy bears his name.

“At the federal level, probably a lot of my better achievements were in preventing bad things from happening.”