NFIB

U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas (Wyo.), an NFIB Guardian of Small Business Award winner and member of the influential Finance Committee, died at 74 from complications related to leukemia. According to a statement released by his family yesterday afternoon, Thomas' cancer had been resistant to his latest round of chemotherapy, and he was listed in serious condition. Thomas was originally elected to Congress in 1989 to succeed Dick Cheney when he was appointed Secretary of Defense by President George H.W. Bush, and was elected to the Senate in 1994 to succeed the retiring U.S. Sen. Malcolm Wallop.

According to Wyoming state law, the Wyoming Republican Party has 15 days to present a list of three possible replacements to Gov. Dave Freudenthal, who then has five days to select a successor from among those three. This person will serve until a 2008 special election, when a vote will determine who will fulfill the remainder of Thomas' six-year term.