Former Rep. Eliot L. Engel, who was a fixture in New York politics for decades until he lost his seat in the House in 2020, has died at the age of 79. Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins confirmed the news in a statement posted on social media. “We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former Congressman Eliot Engel, a tireless public servant who devoted more than three decades to representing the people of New York,” wrote Jenkins. Information on Engel’s cause of death was not immediately available. In a statement shared by ABC, Engel’s family said he died “surrounded by family and loved ones in the borough that raised him: The Bronx.” First elected in 1989, Engel built a reputation as a soft-spoken hard worker with a knack for cultivating Republican allies, frequently evoking the adage that “politics stops at the water’s edge.” Engel, who spent eight years as the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, was an internationalist with a strong belief in the U.S. as a force for good. He rose to become panel chairman after the Democrats gained the majority in the 2018 midterms. He often sought to use economic levers of power, including a 2004 law he authored sanctioning Syria under the regime of Bashar al-Assad and a 2014 law sanctioning Russia for the invasion of Crimea and authorizing aid to Ukraine. In Kosovo, Engel achieved almost rock-star status for decades of work in the Balkan territory, including early support for U.S. intervention in the Kosovo war in 1998. He later pushed for the U.S. to recognize the country when it declared its independence from Serbia in 2008. He has been honored there with street signs and his image on a stamp. “It’s not uncommon for people to stop me in the streets and ask to take pictures with me,” Engel said in a 2017 interview. Engel traced his interest in foreign policy issues to his childhood. His grandparents were immigrants from Ukraine. He grew up in the Democratic clubs of the Bronx and walked the picket lines with his father. He attended New York City public schools, where he later worked as a teacher and guidance counselor. He was elected in 1976 to the state Assembly, where he took up a portfolio on housing and substance-abuse issues. In 1988, he successfully challenged Democratic Rep. Mario Biaggi, who resigned after being convicted of bribery, conspiracy and extortion but remained on the ballot. Engel faced no serious opposition until 2020. The social upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic and that summer’s Black Lives Matters protests left Engel open to accusations of being out of touch — compounded by a damaging hot-mic moment when Engel was overheard saying, “If I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care” about speaking at a Black Lives Matter event. Engel was unseated in the Democratic primary by progressive challenger Jamaal Bowman with a 14-point margin. As news of his passing spread, New York Democrats shared notes of grief. Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote on social media that Engel “brought the best of the Bronx to Congress.” “Eliot was a true gentleman who went out of his way to help me when I was a new member & he was a chairman,” wrote Rep. Brendan F. Boyle. “He was a class act who deeply loved America and always believed that partisanship should end at the water’s edge. His memory will be a blessing.” Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., called Engel “my friend and partner in public service” in a statement published on social media. “Eliot was rarely the loudest in the room, but he knew how to do the hard work of legislating… His work to safeguard democracies and protect human rights for millions across the globe will leave a lasting mark on the world,” Schumer said.
