Rep. Tom Kean Jr.’s Four-Month Absence Sparks Debate Over Privacy, Transparency and Paid-Leave Policy

Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-N.J.) was absent from the House for more than 150 days, missing over 100 votes, after being hospitalized for clinical depression. He returned on July 1, 2026, and addressed the chamber, describing his illness as “physical, emotional” and noting that many people equate depression with mere sadness. Kean said he “didn’t think that I had time for it” because of responsibilities to his family, constituents and the institution.

Mediaite

Since Sen. Thomas Eagleton’s 1972 withdrawal over depression, lawmakers have gradually been more open about mental-health struggles. Recent examples include Sen. John Fetterman’s 2023 hospitalization and Rep. Adam Smith’s 2023 disclosure of anxiety and depression. Nonetheless, the issue remains contested, especially when prolonged absences affect legislative business.

Politico

• Missed votes: >100; absence length: ? 150 days.

Mediaite

• U.S. paid-leave context: the only OECD nation without a national paid-leave guarantee; 2024 Department of Labor data show 95 % of low-wage workers lack paid family leave and 90 % lack short-term disability.

The Guardian

• Kean’s record: voted against New Jersey paid-sick-leave bills in 2008 (parental/family leave up to six weeks) and 2018 (40 hours paid sick leave); supported a 2015 pro-business package that barred municipal paid-leave mandates; later voted for the 2023 Republican tax bill and accompanying Medicaid cuts that could restrict mental-health services for low-income Americans.

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• Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-OR, physician) affirmed a universal right to privacy and mental-health care but warned that officeholders “give up the right to privacy in a certain respect when you run for office.”

Politico

• Speaker Mike Johnson (R) suggested Kean “should have been more specific” about his condition.

Mediaite

• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) framed the issue as a “valid discussion” of constituent responsibility during extended absences.

Politico

• Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), co-chair of the Congressional Mental-Health Caucus, called depression “a brain disease” and expressed disappointment that Kean delayed disclosure.

Politico

• Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) and Rep. Becca Balint (D-VT) emphasized a duty of transparency.

Politico

• Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) said he was “concerned” but respected Kean’s choice; Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) remained optimistic that the disclosure could reduce stigma.

Politico

• Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) defended the privacy decision, noting that medical disclosure is a personal matter.

Politico

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) mocked Kean, stating, “I think there’s this dose of depression that comes with every congressional pin that’s issued,” and added, “Life is hard. Get to work.” She later labeled his absence “taxation without representation” and called it “embarrassing.”

The Independent

Kean’s office initially described his absence as a generic “medical issue.” No precise timeline of his hospitalization has been released, and speculation arose from his continued social-media posting as if he were still at the Capitol. An aide’s offhand comment about “no cameras” in his New Jersey house added to uncertainty about the circumstances of his leave.

Mediaite

• “Certainly everyone has a right to privacy and to health care and to the mental health care that they need,” — Maxine Dexter, Rep., Oregon

Politico

• “If it were me, I would have been more specific about that, and I encouraged him to be.” — Speaker Mike Johnson

Politico

• “I think there’s this dose of depression that comes with every congressional pin that’s issued,” — Rep. Lauren Boebert, Colorado

Politico

• “It’s helpful to the American people and to others with depression to be able to acknowledge that this is what’s happening and it’s not a sin, he’s not a bad person, he’s not a weak person,” — Rep. Don Beyer, Virginia

Politico

• “This is not an easy speech for me to give,” — Rep. Tom Kean Jr., New Jersey

Mediaite

• “Now, when people hear the word depression, many people think simply means feeling sad,” — Rep. Tom Kean Jr., New Jersey

Mediaite

The episode spotlights the tension between elected officials’ privacy rights and their accountability to voters. Kean’s personal use of paid leave while opposing paid-leave legislation intensifies scrutiny of federal labor policy. The public discussion may pressure Congress to address the national paid-leave gap and to normalize mental-health disclosures among lawmakers.

HuffPost

Kean is campaigning for re-election against Democratic nominee Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, in November 2026. Legislative attention to mental-health stigma and paid-leave reforms is expected to grow as the debate over his absence continues.

The Independent