CNN
–
Alice Stewart, a veteran political adviser and CNN political commentator who worked on several Republican Party presidential campaigns, has died. She was 58 years old.
Law enforcement officials told CNN that Stewart’s body was found outdoors in the Belle View neighborhood of northern Virginia on Saturday morning. No foul play is suspected and officers believe a medical emergency occurred.
“Alice was a dear friend and colleague to all of us at CNN,” Mark Thompson, the network’s CEO, said in an email to employees on Saturday. “A veteran politician and Emmy-winning journalist who brought an unparalleled spark to CNN’s coverage, known across our agencies not just for her political knowledge but for her unwavering kindness. Our hearts are heavy as we mourn such an extraordinary loss.”
Stewart was born on March 11, 1966, in Atlanta.
Stewart began her career as a local reporter and producer in Georgia before moving to Little Rock, Arkansas, to be a news anchor, she told Harvard International Review. She went on to serve as communications director in then-Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee’s office before taking on a similar role in his 2008 presidential bid.
She also served as communications director in the 2012 Republican presidential bids of former Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann and then-former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, also a former CNN commentator. Most recently, Stewart was communications director for Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s 2016 Republican presidential campaign.
“Alice was wonderful, talented and a dear friend,” Cruz said in a post on X. “She lived each day to the fullest and we will miss her dearly.”
02:56 – Source: CNN
‘I’m heartbroken’: Jim Acosta gets emotional remembering Alice Stewart
CNN hired Stewart as a political commentator before the 2016 election, and she has appeared on air frequently to provide insight into the day’s political news, including recently on Friday on “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.”
“We always asked her to be on my show because we knew we would be a little smarter at the end of the conversation,” Blitzer told Jessica Dean on “CNN Newsroom.” “She helped our viewers better appreciate what was going on, which is why we will miss her so much.”
CNN anchor and chief political correspondent Dana Bash, who knew Stewart for nearly two decades after first meeting her when Stewart worked for the Huckabee campaign, remembered her Saturday as “someone who told it straight ”.
“One of the many reasons she was so valuable to us on our political panels… is because she brought that experience,” Bash added. “She brought this understanding of how Republican politics and Republican campaigns work and never, ever did it with anything other than a smile.”
Speaking about her role as a commentator for the network, Stewart told Harvard Political Review in 2020 that she brings “a perspective that I think CNN appreciates.”
“My position at CNN is to be a conservative voice but an independent thinker,” Stewart said. “I don’t drink the Kool-Aid; I’m not a never-is-Trump and I didn’t leave my common sense and decency at the door when I voted for (Trump).
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Saturday remembered Stewart as “someone who believed that politics is about making friends, not making enemies.”
He shared with CNN that Stewart “was one of the first to call me and encourage me” after suspending his presidential campaign earlier this year, and that they spoke last week “about the mess we see in our politics today.”
“She was trying to change that and we will miss her,” Hutchinson added.
Stewart co-hosted the podcast “Hot Mics From Left to Right” alongside fellow CNN commentator Maria Cardona.
“I just can’t believe she’s gone,” Cardona said on “CNN Newsroom,” adding that the two would record an episode of their podcast on Saturday. “I want everyone to know that she was a special person, especially in this industry. As you know, politics today can be nasty and very dirty, and Alice was a very loving and shining light.”
04:42 – Source: CNN
Hear Maria Cardona’s moving tribute to her ‘sister’ Alice Stewart
Stewart also served on the senior advisory committee of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, where he was previously a fellow.
In her free time, Stewart was an avid runner. She frequently posted photos of road races on social media, including the TCS New York City Marathon, which she ran in November, and the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile race, which she ran last month.
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Kayla Gallagher contributed to this report.
