Christopher “Kit” Bond, a Republican who brought billions of dollars in federal funding to Missouri during his four terms in the U.S. Senate and who was state’s the youngest person to be governor, died Tuesday. He was 86.

Bond’s political career spanned four decades, during which he went from young, relatively liberal whiz kid to born-again conservative.

Former U.S. senator and Missouri governor Christopher S. "Kit" Bond died May 13 at age 86. Bond spent 40 years in public service and was known as a "favorite son" of Missouri, Gov. Mike Kehoe said in a statement.