Vladimir Zhirinovsky, who founded Russia’s far-right Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) and led it for over 30 years, has died in a Moscow hospital, the lower-house State Duma confirmed Wednesday. He was 75, The Moscow Times reported.

Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the State Duma, called Zhirinovsky “a bright, talented politician” and “a man who deeply understood how the world works and foresaw many things,” in a Telegram post confirming his death.

According to Russian media reports, Zhirinovsky, who had been in declining health for some time, had been gravely ill for weeks after contracting Covid-19, despite claiming to have received eight vaccine doses.