Former Labor senator, party powerbroker and media commentator Graham Richardson has died at the age of 76.
The former senator died at 3.50am, from influenza and pneumonia., his wife told Ben Fordham on 2GB.
"Darcy and Amanda have asked me to share the news with everyone that, sadly, Richo has passed away in the early hours of this morning," Fordham said.
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"In the past few weeks, he's had a bout of influenza and then pneumonia, he also had a little stint on dialysis, trying to clean up his blood a little bit."
Fordham said he lived long enough to see his son mark a milestone.
"When he had his big health challenge, he said to his wife Amanda, 'I'm going to live till I see Darcy finish exams and his HSC'. Darcy did his last HSC exam on Thursday, which was his French exam. And Richo's died this morning," Fordham said.
In 2017, Richardson told 60 Minutes that he hoped his son would become Prime Minister one day.
"I want him to be Prime Minister. If I hang around long enough, I reckon I could manage it," he said
"I could get him there."
Richardson served as New South Wales senator in federal parliament between 1983 and 1994.
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When he first arrived in parliament, he was the youngest elected senator at the time, at the age of just 33.
He served as a cabinet minister under prime ministers Bob Hawke and Paul Keating for a range of positions, including social security, transport and communications, health and the environment.
In 1999, Richardson was diagnosed with a chondrosarcoma, a rare and usually lethal bone cancer in his pelvis.
For over two decades, he underwent multiple surgeries to remove tumours but remained active in politics.
As a political commentator, he appeared on election night coverage and hosted his Richo until 2021, an evening commentary program.
He also appeared on Richo + Jones, a joint show with former broadcaster Alan Jones.
In a post this morning, former Liberal treasurer Josh Frydenberg described Richardson as a "fiercely loyal Labor man who was not afraid to make friends across the political aisle."
More to come...
