(CNN)前乔治亚州参议员约翰尼·艾萨克森去世，享年76岁，他是一名共和党人，在政坛上有着漫长的生涯。
乔治亚州州长布莱恩·肯普(Brian Kemp)周日在一份声明中说，该州“失去了一名巨人”，并将艾萨克森视为“该州最伟大的政治家之一，一位致力于使该州和国家变得比他发现时更好的公仆领袖”。
“约翰尼·艾萨克森将身为格鲁吉亚人的意义拟人化了。约翰尼也是马蒂、女儿们和我的好朋友，对很多人来说也是如此，”坎普在声明中说。
根据美国国会官方传记目录，艾萨克森在他77岁生日前几天去世。
他担任了近15年的参议员，直到2019年以健康问题为由辞职。在宣布退役的时候，他接受了移除肾脏赘生物的手术，从摔断四根肋骨中恢复过来，与此同时，他的帕金森病仍在继续恶化。
“我要离开我热爱的工作，因为我的健康挑战正在给我、我的家人和我的员工带来伤害，”艾萨克森当时说。“随着我面临的健康挑战越来越大，我的结论是，我无法以格鲁吉亚公民应有的方式长期从事这项工作。这句话的意思是:“我在参议员任期中离开是完全违背我的意愿的。但是，我知道，代表我的州这样做是正确的。”
他出生于乔治亚州的富尔顿县，1976年作为该州议会的一名成员开始了他的正式政治生涯。1990年，他试图竞选乔治亚州州长，但失败了。1992年，他当选为州参议员。1996年，Isakson还参加了美国参议院的竞选，在赢得美国众议院的一个席位之前，他是乔治亚州教育委员会的主席，从1999年到2004年，他在众议院任职。
前共和党参议员戴维·珀杜(David Perdue)也在周日上午的一份声明中缅怀了这位格鲁吉亚人。2015年至艾萨克森退休期间，珀杜一直与艾萨克森一起在参议院任职。
“约翰尼是一个有效的同事，一个我尊敬的导师，一个我深深珍惜的朋友，”珀杜写道。“过去几年对约翰尼来说并不容易，但他以坚韧不拔的毅力应对了每一个障碍。认识他的人都会怀念他的机智和善良的心。”
Former Sen. Johnny Isakson dies at the age of 76
(CNN)Former Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Republican who held a long career in politics, has died at the age of 76.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement Sunday the Peach state "lost a giant" and remembered Isakson as "one of its greatest statesmen, and a servant leader dedicated to making his state and country better than he found it."
"Johnny Isakson personified what it means to be a Georgian. Johnny was also a dear friend to Marty, the girls, and me - as he was to so many," Kemp said in a statement.
Isakson died just days ahead of his 77th birthday, according to the official Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
He served as senator for nearly 15 years until he resigned from office in 2019 citing health concerns. He had surgery to remove a growth on his kidney at the time of his announcement and was recovering from a fall that fractured four ribs, all while his Parkinson's disease continued to progress.
"I am leaving a job I love because my health challenges are taking their toll on me, my family and my staff," Isakson said at the time. "With the mounting health challenges I am facing, I have concluded that I will not be able to do the job over the long term in the manner the citizens of Georgia deserve. It goes against every fiber of my being to leave in the middle of my Senate term, but I know it's the right thing to do on behalf of my state."
Born in Fulton County, Georgia, he began his official political career as a member of the state's general assembly in 1976. He launched an unsuccessful bid to be governor of Georgia in 1990 and was elected to the state Senate in 1992. Isakson also ran for US Senate in 1996 and was chair of Georgia's Board of Education before he won a seat in the US House, where he served in the chamber from 1999 to 2004.
Former Republican Sen. David Perdue, who was in the Senate with Isakson from 2015 until Isakson retired, also remembered his fellow Georgian in a statement Sunday morning.
"Johnny was an effective colleague, a mentor I looked up to, and a friend whom I deeply cherished," Perdue wrote. "The last few years have not been easy for Johnny, but he responded to every obstacle with stalwart resilience. His dry wit and kind heart will be missed by everyone who knew him."
