By Dave Mason
The Center Square

California Gov. Gavin Newsom Tuesday ordered flags in Sacramento flown at half-staff at the Capitol and Capitol Annex Swing Space in honor of U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa.

The Republican, who died suddenly Monday night at age 65, represented Northern California’s rural 1st Congressional District for more than 16 years, after a decade in the state Legislature.

LaMalfa died during emergency surgery at Enloe Health hospital in the Northern California city of Chico, according to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office. The agency said LaMalfa was taken to the hospital after medical personnel went to his home immediately after the sheriff’s office received a 911 call around 6:50 p.m. The office’s Coroner’s Unit is investigating the cause of death.

The congressman was praised by Democrats and Republicans Tuesday for his advocacy for his constituents.

Newsom, a Democrat, called LaMalfa, R-Yuba City, “a devoted public servant who deeply loved his country, his state, and the communities he represented.

“While we often approached issues from different perspectives, he fought every day for the people of California with conviction and care,” Newsom said in a statement. “He will be deeply missed.”

California Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher, R-Nicolaus, called LaMalfa “a one of a kind, humble and dedicated public servant.”

“I’m in shock. My mentor, a man who was like a big brother to me, is suddenly gone,” Gallagher said in a statement emailed to The Center Square.

He recalled LaMalfa would wait until the end of every State of Union to talk to the president, Republican or Democrat, about his district.

“His focus was always on the people of his district and the American values he cherished so deeply,” Gallagher said. “There was no one who took the job of representative more seriously than Doug. He traversed the district, going to every dinner and community event. He demanded answers from bureaucrats. He pushed hard for the things his people needed.”

Gallagher expressed his condolences to LaMalfa’s wife, Jill, and their family, which includes the couple’s four children and grandchild.

U.S. Rep. Young Kim, a Republican who represents parts of Southern California’s Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties, said she was “heartbroken to hear of the loss of my dear friend and colleague, Doug LaMalfa.

“For more than a decade, Doug served the people of California with integrity, conviction, and a deep love for our country,” Kim posted on Facebook. “He was a strong conservative lawmaker who never wavered in his commitment to keeping the American Dream alive in California — standing up for working families, farmers, and small businesses when it mattered most.”

A longtime Democrat, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, said she was saddened by the loss of LaMalfa, who she called “my good friend.”

“He was an upstanding colleague, warm and engaging, and a fierce advocate for his constituents,” said Bass, who knew LaMalfa when she was speaker of the California Assembly and a member of the U.S. House.

“Working across the aisle, we had many issues we disagreed upon but collaborated where we could, always with great respect for one another,” Bass said in a statement emailed to The Center Square. “I will always remember him as a leader who worked hard for his community, remembered where he came from and fought for his constituents in the state we both call home.”

Another California Democrat, U.S. Rep. John Garamendi, called LaMalfa a “close friend and colleague who cared deeply about the farmers in his district, as well as the extraordinary natural resources of Northern California.”

Both LaMalfa and Garamendi represented districts in the Sacramento Valley.

Garamendi recalled working with LaMalfa on bipartisan bills to secure water infrastructure investments, advocate for California farmers and protect the Sacramento watershed.

“We traveled together every week, back and forth on the same plane for nearly fifteen years, and our friendship deepened as did our work for the betterment of the Sacramento Valley,” Garamendi said in a statement.