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The last bill introduced by Rep. Gerry Connolly, focused on the cancer that took his life, is heading to President Donald Trump’s desk after winning unanimous Senate approval Wednesday.
The Gerald E. Connolly Esophageal Cancer Awareness Act cleared the chamber almost a year after the House passed it on June 3, 2025. Connolly introduced the legislation two days before his death from esophageal cancer at his Mantua home on May 21, 2025. He was 75.
Rep. James Walkinshaw, who was elected in September to succeed his longtime mentor in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, celebrated the Senate vote.
“I am thrilled that the Senate passed Gerry’s final bill unanimously, following House passage last year, and sent it to the President’s desk,” Walkinshaw said. “Gerry spent his life and career in public office making government work better for people. This bill is an example of just that.”
The legislation directs the Government Accountability Office to report to Congress on federal spending for esophageal cancer-related health care for current and retired federal employees. It also calls for an examination of how often people at high risk for the disease receive screenings.
The findings are intended to help lawmakers better understand the cancer’s effect on federal workers and their access to early detection and treatment.
Virginia Sen. Mark Warner asked colleagues to approve the measure unanimously while honoring Connolly’s advocacy for the federal workforce.
“Federal employees lost a leader who never, ever stopped fighting for them — never stopped fighting for their rights, never stopped fighting for their due process, and never stopped making the case to Americans the value federal workers bring to our everyday lives,” Warner said on the Senate floor.
Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine remembered Connolly as a “great public servant” and a “very fun and colorful guy” who took pride in his Irish Catholic heritage. He also recalled Connolly’s well-known St. Patrick’s Day parties and described him as a tireless advocate.
“This was the condition that claimed Gerry’s life, but how powerful that even two days before he died, he was trying to advance our understanding of this,” Kaine said.
Connolly spent more than a decade on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, serving first as Providence District supervisor and later as board chairman. He was elected to Congress in 2008 and was early in his ninth term when he died.
Two days after winning reelection in November 2024, Connolly disclosed that he had been diagnosed with esophageal cancer. He continued serving during treatment and, as the leading Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, helped direct his party’s opposition to Trump. In April 2025, he announced that he would step down from that committee role and would not seek reelection in 2026.
Esophageal cancer develops in the tissue of the esophagus, which carries food from the throat to the stomach. It is relatively rare and more common among men. Smoking and heavy alcohol use have been identified as risk factors.
Symptoms can include trouble swallowing, weight loss, pain behind the breastbone, coughing, indigestion and a lump beneath the skin.
An estimated 22,530 people in the United States were diagnosed with the disease in 2025, while 16,290 died from it. The five-year survival rate was 22.2%.
Kaine said esophageal cancer is the fastest-growing cancer among American men and that its rise is not fully understood. He argued that additional data and analysis could help identify options for care.
Congress is separately considering naming the U.S. Post Office at 10660 Page Avenue in Fairfax City for Connolly. Walkinshaw introduced the proposal in the House, while Kaine brought it forward in the Senate. The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform advanced the measure 38-2 on Dec. 2, 2025.