Thomas Kean

Saturday marks 100 days since Representative Thomas Kean Jr.’s last public act.

Mr. Kean, a Republican from New Jersey who is facing a difficult re-election fight, voted in Congress on March 5, voicing a crucial “yea” in support of funding President Trump’s immigration crackdown and moving to end a government shutdown.

On the same day, the congressman spoke during a bill markup session of the House’s Committee on Energy and Commerce, reading from a prepared statement in support of a bill that would require children younger than 17 to get parental approval before participating in online gaming chats. “This vulnerability can lead to child exploitation, and must be stopped,” he said.

His voice was halting at times, but nothing about his appearance suggested he was ill.

Then the House had a weeklong recess. When it reconvened on St. Patrick’s Day, Mr. Kean was not there.

In March, he missed a vote to rein in the federal deficit.

In April, he missed a vote to amend the Clean Air Act.

In early June, he missed a vote on whether to withhold funding for low-income child care to “noncompliant” states.

In all, the congressman has missed 135 House votes during his mysterious absence. During that time his office has released two statements, attributed to Mr. Kean, indicating he is under medical care for an undisclosed health condition that has kept him away from Washington and out of the public eye.

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