Minnesota’s GOP Senate candidate Jason Lewis was rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery on Monday, according to his campaign.
Mr. Lewis, a former congressman, is running against incumbent Sen. Tina Smith, Minnesota Democrat, in next week’s election.
“Early this morning, Congressman Lewis was rushed to the emergency room with severe abdominal pain,” Tom Szymanski, Mr. Lewis’ campaign manager, said in a statement on Monday. “Following tests and examination, doctors determined that he is suffering from a severe internal hernia, a diagnosis which they indicated is life-threatening if not treated quickly. As such, Congressman Lewis was rushed into emergency surgery which he is now undergoing.”
Later in the day, Mr. Szymanski said the surgery was “successful and minimally invasive.”
“Provided that his recovery continues on a positive trajectory, doctors anticipate that he is likely to be released from the hospital in the next couple of days,” Mr. Szymanski said in a statement on Monday afternoon. “On behalf of Jason and his wife Leigh, thank you for all the prayers and well wishes that have poured in from across the nation, and let me assure you that nothing will keep Jason Lewis sidelined in his fight to protect Minnesotans from the radical left’s assault on our police officers, economy, and our Minnesota way of life.”
Mr. Lewis is trailing Ms. Smith by 5.8 percentage points in RealClearPolitics’ average of polls, but the gap has narrowed in the last month. A KSTP-SurveyUSA poll released last week showed Ms. Smith leading by 1 percentage point, 43-42, with 12% of voters remaining undecided.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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