Progressive Democrats wasted no time eulogizing the legacy of Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), a progressive lion of the lower chamber who died on Thursday at the age of 77 after a battle with lung cancer. 

Huddled at the Democrats’ annual retreat in Northern Virginia, the melancholy lawmakers remembered Grijalva not only as a fierce champion of the environment, immigrant rights and economic justice, but also as a mentor to like-minded lawmakers who viewed him as a hero and role model.

Grijalva, said Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), was “a real giant of the House and of the progressive movement … a champion of the environment and environmental justice … and he was a real mentor and friend to me.” 

Casar, 35, said he knew Grijalva as a legendary figure for his fight against a controversial Arizona law, known as SB-1070, that targeted immigrants living in the country without legal status. Passed in 2010, the “show-me-your-papers” law required those in the country legally to carry documents proving their status or face arrest. 

Later, after arriving on Capitol Hill in 2023, Casar said he relished the opportunity to talk with Grijalva “about music, and dominoes and about when we were going to get real Mexican food in D.C.” 

“Really as a young Latino in politics, there were not that many Latino progressives with a real national profile to look up to,” Casar said. “And he’s somebody who I was just so proud to call somebody that I looked up to — and was able to serve with far too briefly.”

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a former CPC chair, has similar memories. She recalled a discussion with Grijalva when she was poised to replace him as a co-chair of the CPC in 2019. Grijalva had held that post for the previous decade — the longest-serving chair in CPC’s history — and she knew she had big shoes to fill.

“I remember when we had the conversation about it — I was the first vice chair — he said, ‘It is so important that we have somebody who has been fighting in the movement already.’ And I said, ‘Well, we’re just following in your path, Raúl,’” Jayapal said. 

“You never had to wonder where Rep. Grijalva was going to be on a critical vote. He was always going to be in the place of the people, and he was an incredible support to me personally,” she continued. “He was a champion on so many big issues. I was sleeping in church basements for SB-1070 when he was fighting as an elected official. … It is an immense loss, and my thoughts go out to his family. And I hope they know how strong his legacy will be for a very long time.” 

Grijalva, a son of a Mexican migrant worker, was first elected to Congress in 2002 and quickly established himself as a liberal champion of the low- and working-classes. He rose to become a co-chair of the CPC in 2009, and when Democrats won control of the House in 2019, he ascended as chair of the powerful Natural Resources Committee.

From that perch, Grijalva helped lead the Democratic charge in the battle against climate change and helped to craft the Democrats’ sweeping climate bill, which passed under former President Biden. 

Following Grijalva’s death on Thursday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) hailed the Arizona veteran for his long career in public service — which began long before he came to Washington — and hailed him as “a progressive warrior who always fought for the least, the lost and the left behind.”

“He was a mentor to many and a friend to all,” Jeffries said, “and we will miss his principled presence and wisdom greatly in the Congress.”