WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy was hospitalized over the weekend after suffering a stroke, his office announced Sunday.
The 53-year-old Connecticut Democrat first noticed physical symptoms on Saturday afternoon while attending his son’s hockey game, according to his chief of staff, Allison Herwitt. Medical personnel initially evaluated Murphy at an area facility before moving him to a specialized hospital for ongoing care.
“Senator Murphy started experiencing numbness in his arm while at his son’s hockey game,” Herwitt said in a public statement released Sunday. “He was taken to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had experienced a stroke.”
Treatment and recovery outlook
Murphy was subsequently transferred to Johns Hopkins “for further monitoring and is responding well to treatment,” Herwitt stated, as reported by CBS News and NBC News. Aides emphasized that medical staff remain hopeful regarding his long-term prognosis.
“The doctors are encouraged by his progress, he is awake and alert, and we are optimistic he will make a full recovery,” Herwitt added.
Murphy has represented Connecticut in the U.S. Senate since 2013 following a three-year tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives. While he is not on the ballot in this cycle, the senator has spent recent weeks traveling across the country to campaign on behalf of Democratic candidates in the upcoming midterm elections, CBS News reported.
Campaign schedule disrupted
Prior to his medical emergency on Saturday, Murphy had been scheduled to appear in New Hampshire on Sunday to campaign alongside U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, the Democratic nominee seeking a Senate seat in that state, NBC News reported.
Murphy has drawn national attention as a vocal critic of President Donald Trump and has been frequently discussed by political observers as a potential contender for the 2028 presidential race, according to CBS News.
Days before his hospitalization, Murphy delivered remarks Thursday at a Middle East Institute gathering in Washington. During that address, he criticized foreign policy proposals and called the administration’s potential plans regarding military conflict with Iran following the midterm elections “insane,” NBC News reported.
Earlier this autumn, Murphy’s staff confronted security concerns when his office was among more than a dozen congressional locations that received mail containing suspicious substances, NBC News reported.
Aides have not yet announced when Murphy is expected to be discharged from Johns Hopkins or when he might return to his regular legislative duties in the Senate.
