Overview
- Her son confirmed late Friday that Nancy Kassebaum Baker died of natural causes at age 94.
- Kassebaum Baker served three terms in the U.S. Senate from 1978 to 1997 and was the first woman elected to the chamber without following a spouse into office.
- She chaired the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee and coauthored the 1996 bipartisan health-insurance law often tied to her name and that of Sen. Ted Kennedy.
- In retirement she sometimes broke with Republican leaders, endorsing Democrats in Kansas races and calling for President Trump’s impeachment after the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
- Kansas leaders and national commentators praised her independence and steady public service, while some obituaries also note a mixed record on foreign-policy votes involving Israel.