Who is Kay Granger, missing Texas Congresswoman, found with ‘dementia issues’ after months?

The fiery debate and vote on an interim spending bill in the US House had members looking for Texas' Republican Congresswoman Kay Granger, who has been missing from the setting for months.

The 81-year-old Granger, who has represented Texas Congressional District 12, has not cast her vote in the House since July, The Dallas Express reported.

She had announced that her plans to retire after the conclusion of her term in early 2025, following which Granger was nowhere to be seen in the public eye.

Meanwhile, speculation of her being in an old-age or memory care home started doing the rounds.

Prompted by the situation, the media outlet tried calling Granger's district and DC offices, but the calls went straight to voicemail which plays a message from Granger.

“I am sorry we are unable to answer your phone right now. We are really glad you called us. Please leave your name, phone number and a brief message and someone in our office will call you back as soon as possible,” the recorded message was quoted by The Dallas Express.

The Congresswoman's offices were also found locked, with glass doors covered. The office seemed to be unoccupied, the report said. Staff at the building told the media outlet that Granger had locked up the office before Thanksgiving and hadn't been there since.

Through a tip, the media outlet learnt that Granger had been living at a local memory care and assisted living home after having been found in a lost and confused state.

The home confirmed to The Dallas Express that the Congresswoman had indeed been living at the Traditions Senior Living in Fort Worth, Texas.

Granger has ‘dementia issues’

The Congresswoman's son, Brandon Granger, told the Dallas Morning News on Sunday that his mother has "dementia issues", which is why she has been away from her Congress for the past few months.

"It's been a hard year," Brandon was quoted as saying.

Brandon, however, dismissed reports of his mother living in a memory care facility and said that Tradition Senior Living was an independent living facility for the elderly.

However, with her absence, chaos erupted in the US House over the lack of representation during voter period.

“The lack of representation for CD-12 is troubling to say the least. At a time when extraordinarily important votes are happening, including debt ceiling, disaster relief, farm bills and border issues, Kay Granger is nowhere to be found. The margin in Congress is razor thin and the lack of a Republican vote representing CD-12 disenfranchises 2 million people. We deserve better,” Tarrant County Republican Chairman Bo French was quoted as saying by The Dallas Express.

Other residents of the county have also raised similar concerns.

Granger was first elected in 1996 and in 2023 she announced that she would not seek another term in office, Politico reported.

Kay Granger is one of the 23 Congress members (16 in the House and 7 senators) who are at least 80-years-old.