Alice Stewart, a Republican strategist and CNN political commentator, has died. She was 58 years old.
Her death was announced by CNN. Police found Stewart’s body early Saturday morning outside in northern Virginia, the company said. Authorities believe she had a medical emergency.
In an email to staff, CNN CEO Mark Thompson called her “a political veteran and Emmy Award-winning journalist who brings unparalleled brilliance to CNN’s reporting.” “She was known not only for her political knowledge but also for her political acumen.” “Her unwavering kindness,” CNN reported.
Stewart has appeared on cable news shows as a conservative commentator since the 2016 presidential election. Prior to that, Mr. Stewart worked on several Republican presidential campaigns.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she was the communications director for former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s 2008 presidential campaign, and also worked for Republican candidates in the following two elections, including Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, and Ted Cruz. served in a similar role for the .
Stewart served as assistant secretary of state in Arkansas and was a fellow at the university in 2020, according to the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics. He was also active in Republican and conservative groups.
At CNN, Stewart saw himself as a staunch promoter of conservatism as the Republican Party realigned under the leadership of former President Donald J. Trump.
“I don’t think everything he does is great, and I don’t think everything he does is bad,” Stewart said of Trump in a 2020 interview with the Harvard Political Review. “My position at CNN is to be an independent thinker with a conservative voice.”
In an op-ed published last year on CNN, Stewart asked Republican voters to reconsider their unconditional support for Trump in the 2024 election, given the various criminal charges he faces. .
“This is a campaign about self-preservation, not selfless public service,” Stewart wrote. “I don’t think that’s the way to make America great again.”
Long before joining CNN, Stewart had experience presenting ideas on live television.
Stewart was a news anchor and reporter for the NBC television affiliate in Little Rock, Arkansas, for seven years before turning to politics in 2005 as press secretary in the Huckabee administration, according to LinkedIn.
“I loved covering politics. I loved the courts. I loved breaking news,” Stewart said in a 2020 interview with Harvard International Review. “But a few years ago I realized I might need to do something different.”
Stewart was born in Atlanta on March 11, 1966, according to CNN. She earned degrees in broadcast news and political science from the University of Georgia, according to the Harvard International Review.
According to CNN, Stewart last appeared on CNN on Friday on “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.”
A list of survivors was not immediately available.
