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Senator Chris Murphy hospitalized after a stroke at his son's hockey game

The Connecticut Democrat, 53, felt numbness in his arm on Saturday and was found to have had a stroke; his chief of staff said on Sunday that doctors were encouraged and that a full recovery was expected.

· from 4 sites

What happened

Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut was taken to the hospital on Saturday, October 31, after he began to feel numbness in his arm while watching his son play hockey, his chief of staff, Allison Herwitt, said in a statement released on Sunday. Doctors at a local hospital found that he had suffered a stroke, according to the statement, which NPR, NBC News, the Guardian and the BBC all reported.

Murphy was then moved to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring. Herwitt said he was responding well to treatment. "He is awake and alert," she wrote, adding that his doctors were encouraged by his progress and that his team was optimistic he would make a full recovery.

A busy campaign schedule

The stroke came in the final days before Tuesday's midterm elections. Murphy, who is not on the ballot this year, had been traveling widely to campaign for other Democrats, the BBC reported, with recent stops in Michigan, Minnesota and Florida. NBC News said he had been due in New Hampshire on Sunday to campaign alongside Rep. Chris Pappas, the Democratic nominee for Senate there.

Connecticut Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said she had been with Murphy on Friday evening, when he was urging voters to take part in the election, the Guardian reported. She said she was glad to hear he was doing well.

NPR described Murphy as a prolific surrogate for his party's candidates during the midterm cycle. It reported that he had recently returned from a tour of several Middle Eastern countries, after which he warned that President Donald Trump would sharply escalate the war on Iran once the election was over.

A national profile

Murphy has served in the Senate since 2013 after a stint in the House of Representatives, the BBC reported. He is seen as a possible candidate for president in 2028, according to NPR, the Guardian and the BBC. The Guardian noted that he became one of the most prominent voices for gun reform after the Sandy Hook school shooting, and NPR said he had built a reputation on foreign policy and on aggressive oversight of the executive branch.

Asked in a 2025 interview with the Guardian about a possible White House run, Murphy said anyone focused on the 2026 or 2028 elections would be foolish, arguing that all energy should go into what he called saving democracy.

Other lawmakers who faced health scares

Murphy is the latest member of Congress to face a serious health problem this year, NPR reported. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky spent months away from the Senate during a long hospital stay and rehabilitation, which the BBC said followed a bad fall.

Several senators have had strokes in recent years. NPR and the BBC both listed Democrats Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, who were each hospitalized in 2022, and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. Fetterman sent his good wishes on Sunday. Writing on X, he said he understood "how much this impacts your life" and that his family was rooting for a full and speedy recovery, the BBC reported.

Key points

  • Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, had a stroke on Saturday after feeling numbness in his arm at his son's hockey game.
  • He was moved to Johns Hopkins, and his chief of staff said he was awake and alert, with a full recovery expected.
  • Murphy, 53 and seen as a possible 2028 presidential contender, had been campaigning for Democrats ahead of the midterms.
  • He had been scheduled to campaign in New Hampshire on Sunday with Senate nominee Chris Pappas.

Sources

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