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On Tuesday, April 4, Illinois Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia announced on Twitter that his "beloved" 28-year-old daughter Rosa Garcia had passed away the previous night. The cause of her death was not immediately announced.
The congressman shared that their family was left completely crestfallen by Rosa's death. He revealed that she had been in the foster care system before joining their family as a young girl. Chuy added:
“We did our best to provide a stable, loving, and welcoming home for her. Our family asks for privacy and welcomes your thoughts and prayers during this most difficult time.”
As stated by The Chicago Sun-Times, Rosa was Chuy and Evelyn’s youngest daughter amongst three children.
Chuy has been a mainstay of Chicago politics for more than 30 years. He served in the Illinois Senate for about six years between 1993 and 1999 and has also been a City Council member in Chicago from 1986 to 1993. Many of Jesus "Chuy" Garcia’s fellow politicians offered their heartfelt messages and condolences at the news of his daughter’s demise.
Tributes pour in for Jesus "Chuy" Garcia's late daughter Rosa Garcia
Many people shared their condolences after Chuy Garcia's announcement tweet and prayed for his family. Some also expressed sorrow over the fact that Rosa was too young to leave the world this soon. A few people who are parents themselves empathized with the congressman at the loss of his child.
Many, who do not agree with Chuy Garcia's political views, also shared their words of comfort for the 66-year-old Congress Representative and wished him and his family peace.
Brandon Johnson, who won the Chicago Mayoral runoff on Tuesday, also shared his condolences for the untimely death of Jesus "Chuy" Garcia’s daughter.
Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia and Paul Vallas, the CEO of Chicago Public Schools, both ran against Brandon in a bid to become the next mayor of Chicago. Paul also offered his comfort to the Garcia family on Twitter.
Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia was elected to Congress in 2018 and has since represented Illinois’s Fourth Congressional District. He ran for mayor of the Windy City twice. However, Chuy failed to qualify as Chicago's next mayor for Tuesday’s runoff as he received about 14% of the general election vote on February 28.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Chuy Garcia spoke about his fears over his son, Samuel Garcia’s involvement in street gangs during his mayoral election bid earlier in 2023. He said:
“I nearly lost my son to the gangs. We can’t afford to lose one more kid.”
Jesus "Chuy" Garcia has been one of the most influential Latin-American politicians in the United States. In November 2022, when he announced his campaign for Chicago’s mayor, many predicted that he would be a top contender.
However, some of his supporters lined up behind the other runners, Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas. Chuy Garcia landed in fourth place with a 14% vote in Tuesday’s election results, which was one slot behind former mayor Lori Lightfoot, who got a 17% vote.
