A statement from Joel’s family
Wednesday, April 15th, 2026
It is with great sadness that we share the news that our stepfather, Joel Connelly, died this morning, peacefully, with his immediate family by his side.
Many of you know Joel had been struggling with his health these past few years, but as he would quickly note: “Above the shoulders, I’m just fine.” One of his goals was to keep on writing, with particular focus on saving our democracy. He was writing up to the day his body failed him.
We are sorry that he wasn’t able to accomplish his other goal, hoping to witness the Trump regime’s demise.
We are working on plans for a celebration of his life and a memorial service, and will provide updates once we have more details to share.
Thank you for the many thoughts and prayers we’ve received from near and far.
— Melissa, Aaron and Bellamy Pailthorp
Gallery: Joel in action through the years
Recent posts on NPI’s Cascadia Advocate and Post Alley
- Will Alaska be a Pickup for Senate Democrats?
by Joel Connelly on April 15th, 2026 at 12:22 PMA survey by Public Policy Polling shows Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan trailing Democratic challenger Mary Peltola by two points.
- Scramble for the Senate: Mary Peltola is running a strong, winnable campaign against Dan Sullivan in Alaska
by Joel Connelly on April 13th, 2026 at 11:58 PMPeltola is a proven winner, having served as the Last Frontier’s at-large representative in the United States House of Representatives before and after the 2022 midterms. She was defeated in 2024 by Nick Begich and is now running for a six-year term against entrenched Republican Dan Sullivan. Scramble for the Senate: Mary Peltola is running a strong, winnable campaign against Dan Sullivan in Alaska is a post from NPI’s Cascadia Advocate, the journal of the Northwest Progressive Institute. Published continuously since March of 2004, NPI’s Cascadia Advocate provides thoughtful commentary and analysis on regional, national, and world politics. Keep The Cascadia Advocate going by making a contribution to sustain NPI’s research and advocacy here.
- Powered by Trump: Canada’s Liberals Win Back their Majority
by Joel Connelly on April 13th, 2026 at 12:58 PMThanks to Trump’s unpopularity and the defections of some to the center-left Liberals, PM Mark Carney now holds majority power.
- A “Recurring American Affliction”
by Joel Connelly on April 12th, 2026 at 12:48 PMThe Trump administration is restoring obstacles that Black citizens had to circumnavigate to gain rights of citizenship.
- Trump Class Coin: Dear Leader Everywhere
by Joel Connelly on April 8th, 2026 at 12:50 PMAs our democracy celebrates its 250th birthday, Donald Trump is thrusting himself at us. Our new Gilded Age is taking on indisputable tackiness.