Ronald Reagan's Eldest Son Has Died After Years of Right-Wing Advocacy

The legacy of Ronald Reagan and his presidency is still shaping America in profound ways. Now, news has broken that Reagan's eldest son, Michael, has died at the age of 80.

Following the news of his death after decades of advocating on behalf of the causes his father believed in, many wanted to better understand Michael's life and legacy, as well as more about how he died.

Michael's history with the president was fascinating. Here's what we know about his cause of death.

Michael's cause of death was not announced as part of the several statements released about his death. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute announced his death first on X (formerly known as Twitter), describing Michael as a "steadfast guardian of his father’s legacy.”

Michael's wife, Colleen, alongside their two children, Cameron Reagan and Ashley Reagan Dunster, also released a statement following the news.

“Michael was called home to be with the Lord on Sunday, January 4th, surrounded by his entire family," the statement read. “Our hearts are deeply broken as we grieve the loss of a man who meant so much to all who knew and loved him.”

Michael was the host of the Conservative radio program The Michael Reagan Show and a contributor to Newsmax at the time of his death.

Michael was actually born to a woman named Irene Flaugher and was adopted just hours after he was born by the future president and his then-wife, Jane Wyman. In a surprising twist of fate, Michael took on both of the careers that his father had pursued, and in the same order. After attending Arizona State University and Los Angeles Valley College, he pursued a career in acting before eventually pivoting to politics.

Michael wrote several books over the course of his life, and in those books detailed how he came to grips with his adoption. While Ronald Reagan was his father, Michael appears to have had a sometimes testy relationship with Nancy Reagan, the president's second wife. In 1984, he asked Nancy, who was then serving as First Lady, to apologize for suggesting that he was estranged from his father.

In spite of what seems to have been an occasionally complicated set of family dynamics, Michael nevertheless seems to have been instilled with many of the Conservative values that defined his father's political career. Douglas Elmets, who worked in the Reagan White House as a communications official, told The New York Times that he wanted to build his own legacy, even as he knew how much his father's meant.

“He had his own family and mission, and unlike many relatives of presidents, he didn’t try to latch on or take advantage,” Elmets said. “But he would take phone calls and respond to emails from people I don’t think he knew well just because he was the president’s son, to carry on that legacy.”

Regardless of how much he did or didn't take advantage of his father's name, though, it's clear that Michael believed in what his father stood for.