Vanishing Republican congressman breaks silence on secret medical mystery as he returns to Capitol after 116-day absence

By VICTORIA CHURCHILL, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 15:04, 30 June 2026 | Updated: 15:16, 30 June 2026 A Republican congressman who vanished for 116 days has finally returned to the Capitol, promising 'complete transparency' as he prepares to address the House. Tom Kean Jr, who dodged his own party and won his primary in New Jersey anyway, was spotted back on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, preparing to make his speech. Before heading to the floor of the House of Representatives, Kean was spotted kissing his wife. The Donald Trump-backed candidate represents one of the most vulnerable GOP seats in Congress, NJ's 7th district, which the President won by a single point in 2024. Kean, 57, has previously hinted at being sidelined by a medical issue and missed more than 140 votes as Republicans are under pressure to advance their legislative agenda with a razor-thin majority. His campaign issued a statement on June 2, writing: 'Right now I am focused on my recovery and under the advice of healthcare professionals, I will transition from virtual work to in person work within a matter of weeks. At that time I will be completely transparent as to the nature of my medical condition.' House Speaker Mike Johnson previously dismissed rampant speculation about Kean's absence, telling reporters 'it's not a scandalous thing at all.' 'I do know what his health issue is but he's asked me not to disclose that and I'm going to honor that,' Johnson told reporters on June 3. 'What he's dealing with is not very common and not a big thing.'  'When he explains it, it will all make sense,' he added.  U.S. Rep. Tom Kean (R-NJ), who is returning from an unexplained months-long absence, arrives for an expected floor speech at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 3 Kean (R-NJ), who is returning from an unexplained months-long absence, arrives for an expected floor speech at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 30 Kean (R-NJ), who is returning from an unexplained months-long absence, arrives for an expected floor speech at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 30 In his typical fashion, the President issued an endorsement of Kean hours before the primary contest, encouraging his supporters to back the incumbent on Tuesday night. In his endorsement for Kean, Trump said 'he will never let you down.' Yet, with his cryptic absence, the argument that Kean has let his constituents down will likely be made forcefully by Democrats in the march to November. 'His months-long absence has put a spotlight on his self-inflicted vulnerabilities including playing the stock market while in office, putting loyalty to Donald Trump first, and failing to show up when the people of New Jersey need him most,' the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee noted in a Tuesday release. A GOP operative who spoke about the race with the Washington Post noted, 'We cannot hold the majority without this seat. And folks need to know if he is capable of running for reelection and winning. ... You can't just go missing for months and tell people they just need to be patient and wait without any accountability.' Rebecca Bennett, who is running against Kean in November, is exciting Democrats because she's seen as a prototype of Governor Mikie Sherrill, a moderate-facing female with a military background who can appeal to suburban voters with an independent streak. Senior GOP staffers and lawmakers who spoke with Punchbowl News last month said they had received little to no information about Kean's condition or whereabouts. Kean, in a post made to his congressional campaign's social media page in late April, said that he was dealing with an unspecified 'personal medical issue' that he expects to recover from.  Rebecca Bennett, Democrat candidate for New Jersey's 7th Congressional District, speaks at a campaign event on Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Flemington, New Jersey 'My doctors continue to assure me that my recovery will be complete and that I will be back to the job I love very soon,' Kean said in the statement. 'I expect to return to a full schedule and be at 100 percent. Kean's campaign account has continued to post over the last several weeks, though none appear to be photographs taken in real time. The campaign's fundraising solicitation emails have emphasized how 'razor-thin the margin' is for GOP control in the US House. Kean won his 2024 race by nearly 7 percentage points but Kalshi markets have handed Bennett an 80 percent chance of flipping the seat as of Tuesday night. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. 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