SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) - Bre Payton, a political journalist who wrote for the conservative news outlet The Federalist, has died in San Diego on Friday according to her employer.
Payton, a 26-year-old political writer and TV commentator, was found unconscious and "barely breathing" in her apartment in San Diego by her friend Morgan Murtaugh on Thursday morning, according to Murtaugh and the charitable organization site CaringBridge.org.
The Caring Bridge page also states that 911 was immediately called and Payton was then taken to the hospital. It was determined Payton had "the H1N1 flu and possibly meningitis" after undergoing a CT scan and testing, according to the site.
Payton was a frequent guest on Fox News and CNN and also appeared on MSNBC, NPR and BBC World News.
It is not known how she contracted the H1N1 flu virus.
Ben Domenech, founder and publisher of The Federalist also confirmed Payton's death in a Twitter post, "Bre has passed. We are devastated. Last we saw her, she was her funny, smart, vivacious self. Now lost to us so suddenly."
Meghan McCain, daughter of late Sen. John McCain, tweeted, "Ben and I are absolutely gutted and horrified by this news. Our prayers for @Bre_payton and her family. We are less without her - in every possible way. A wonderful, fearless, vibrant, intelligent young woman. Sending prayers to all of her family and friends during this darkness."
According to Payton's bio on The Federalist website she had "written on subjects ranging from Kanye West to Supreme Court rulings, to 2016 and breaking news "
She previously worked as a reporter for Watchdog.org and received her degree in Political Journalism from Patrick Henry College.
