Ailing Republican state Sen. Bud Estes has died, Senate leadership announced in a news release Saturday morning. He was 74.
Senate president Ty Masterson said in a statement that Estes had "a kind and gentle spirit and was well respected by all who served with him in the legislature." Masterson's spokesman, Mike Pirner, said Estes' widow notified lawmakers of his death and approved the release.
Estes won re-election in November to a second term representing a southwest Kansas district that includes the Dodge City and Liberal area. He had been hospitalized in recent months and had not been in Topeka this session.