Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid Reportedly Dead at 82-Years-Old

Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has reportedly passed away at 82-years-old. Reid was the leader of the Senate for eight years prior to Kentucky Republican Mitch McConnell taking over.

Reid played a large role in getting the Obamacare legislation passed as well as eliminating the 60-vote requirement to end a filibuster against all executive branch nominees and judicial nominees other than to the Supreme Court.

Nevada Journalist Jon Ralston tweeted the news and said, “Harry Reid, probably the most important elected official in Nevada history, has died at 82. My condolences to his family and friends.”

“I’ll have a lot to say about Reid, who I covered for three and a half decades and whom I am writing a book about. He was a remarkable figure, underestimated and misunderstood by many, with so many contradictory traits. I’ll have it all in the book. I’ll also do a column soon,” Ralston added.

Director of the UVA Center for Politics Larry Sabato responded to Ralston, “Yes, condolences to his family especially. I taught one of his sons many years ago @UVA.”

Yes, condolences to his family especially. I taught one of his sons many years ago @UVA.

— Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) December 29, 2021

Recently, Las Vegas Airport officially changed its name to Harry Reid International Airport, 73 years after being named for Nevada’s Sen. Patrick McCarran.

The Associated Press reported that in February, the Clark County Commission unanimously approved renaming the airport after reports of McCarran’s “history of perpetuating racism, xenophobia and antisemitism” began to surface.

Since 1948, the airport had been named after McCarran due to the senator’s reputation as a vocal advocate for the aviation industry.