Former Vice President Dick Cheney Is Dead at 84 — Details on His Cause of Death

Former Vice President Dick Cheney, a looming conservative figure in politics, is dead at 84. The news was confirmed by his family in a statement released Nov. 4, 2025. The polarizing leader continued to be a presence in politics long after his vice presidency ended. In September 2024, he endorsed presidential candidate Kamala Harris in a move that shocked Republicans.

According to CNN, Cheney referred to Donald Trump as a threat to the republic, citing his attempt to steal the 2020 election. "As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution," he said. Here's what we know about the former vice president's cause of death.

The former vice president died due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, per his family in a statement obtained by the . He had previously survived five heart attacks, the first of which happened when he was only 37. Cheney told Fox News Sunday that in 2011, he was "near death" when he received a battery-operated heart pump, reported The Seattle Times.

The heart pump kept Cheney alive for 20 months until he underwent heart transplant surgery in March 2012. Following its success, he described his health as "nothing short of a miracle." Cheney went on to say from that moment forward, he woke up every morning with a smile on his face. He was grateful for the new day he didn't expect to see.

Former President George W. Bush released a statement about the death of his longtime friend and vice president. In a post to X (formerly Twitter), Bush wrote that Cheney's death is a "loss to the nation and a sorrow to his friends." He went on to say, "History will remember him as among the finest public servants of his generation — a patriot who brought integrity, high intelligence, and seriousness of purpose to every position he held."

Cheney was one of the first politicians to suggest an invasion of Iraq, per the BBC. Before that, he advocated for the use of force against Saddam Hussein after his troops invaded Kuwait. Cheney and the Bush administration repeatedly suggested there was a link between Hussein and 9/11, which was false.

Cheney insisted Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was also a staunch proponent of waterboarding captured terrorist suspects. He was an unapologetic supporter of war whose policies resulted in the loss of millions of lives. It's for this reason that social media is filled with celebratory posts about his passing.

As people cheer the death of Cheney, it's worth nothing that he acknowledged his own status as a boogeyman of sorts. "Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole?” he once asked. "It’s a nice way to operate, actually."