Along with two members of her congressional staff and another individual, Republican U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski was murdered in an automobile accident in her northern Indiana district on Wednesday, according to the police.
According to the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Office, the SUV Walorski was driving crossed the centerline on State Road 19 at 12:30 p.m. and hit head-on with another vehicle. After witnesses and video proof were discovered, the material was revised. Initially, according to the police, the other car’s driver crossed the centerline.
Every waking moment for Jackie was energetically devoted to improving the lives of all Hoosiers, the epitome of a good and faithful servant. She, and the example she set, will be missed every day forward.
— Governor Eric Holcomb (@GovHolcomb) August 3, 2022
Walorski, 58, two of her employees, and Edith Schmucker, 56, of Nappanee, the driver of the second car, all perished in the collision.
Emma Thomson, the representative’s communications director, is 28 years old, and Zachery Potts, her district director and the Republican chairman for St. Joseph County in northern Indiana, is 27 years old.
The sheriff’s office does not yet know what led Potts to over the centerline, despite police reporting that Potts was the driver at the time.
Everyone in the accident was wearing a seatbelt, according to police, and the airbags did go off. They are requesting that anybody who knows of any further possible witnesses contact the sheriff’s office.
I'm shocked and saddened to hear of the tragic death of Congresswoman Jackie Walorski. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and the other victims of this terrible crash.
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) August 3, 2022
The congresswoman’s death and those of the other people killed in the collision drew swift reactions.
Following the collision, Pete Buttigieg, a former mayor of South Bend and the current secretary of transportation, expressed his astonishment and sadness upon learning of Walorski’s passing. Walorski was a native and lifelong resident of South Bend.
While in the nation’s capital, Buttigieg claimed to have worked with Walorski, who was always willing to collaborate where there was common ground, always decent and straightforward, and who genuinely cared about her work and constituents despite the fact that they came from different political backgrounds.
Walorski and her husband served as Christian missionaries in Romania before starting a charity that helped underprivileged kids by giving them food and medical necessities. Prior to entering politics, she was a television news reporter in South Bend.
Walorski has dedicated her whole political career to boosting the economy and creating quality employment in northern Indiana. She also aimed to improve national security and assist wounded veterans.
