Another lawmaker is missing in action amid month-long absence from voting

Congress' issue with missing lawmakers has gotten worse, according to a New Republic report, as voting records indicate that an 83-year-old Democratic congresswoman has been missing in action for the last month, and has yet to give a reason why.

Prior to this new report, alarms had been raised over Rep. Tom Kean Jr., a New Jersey Republican, who has been absent from Congress since early March, and just announced that he would be missing another week, citing a vague "personal health matter." He has, so far, missed upwards of 65 votes in the House, and raised alarms about his potential standing in the upcoming midterm election, given his vulnerable seat.

Now, eagle-eyed observers have found another notable absence in the House, this time on the other side of the aisle. On Thursday, the New Republic detailed the situation surrounding Rep. Frederica Wilson, a Florida Democrat, who has missed votes for the last four weeks without explanation. The absence once again raises the issue of elderly members of Congress, as Wilson is 83 and still seeking reelection after 15 years in office.

Wilson is a member of both the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the House Committee on Education and Workforce. In videos from committee meetings held since April 17, when she was last recorded voting, Wilson has been notably missing.

Amid this absence, Wilson's social media presence appears to be trying to paper over the issue with continued posts.

"She has so far failed to address her nearly four-week absence, though her team has been busy keeping her social media active and curated," the New Republic explained. "Some of the account’s posts seem designed to trick people into thinking that Wilson is still out and about. In one bizarre post circulated earlier this week and flagged on X by Capitol Hill correspondent Jamie Dupree, Wilson’s team reused photographs of her from an October event, in an attempt to suggest that the lawmaker was still mingling with her constituents."

Wilson's seat is considered to be a solidly Democratic one, but the New Republic noted that her absence could still endanger her tenure in Congress due to the primary threat she is facing from within her own party.

"Christine Sanon-Jules Olivo, a small-business owner with ties to the NAACP, is running to unseat her in the district’s Democratic primary, scheduled for August 18," the report detailed.