(Jackson Richman/JNS) Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey announced this week that former U.S. Senator Jon Kyl will replace the Senate seat held by the late John McCain.

“All who care about Israel and America are thrilled,” Zionist Organization of America president Mort Klein told JNS. “He is a man of high intelligence, enormous integrity, highly principled and extraordinarily decent.”

AIPAC representatives also gave favorable reviews of Kyl, saying he has “a distinguished record as a leader advancing the U.S.-Israel relationship, and we look forward to work with him again.”

“There is no better way to honor the memory of John McCain than by replacing him with another exemplary public servant,” the Republican Jewish Coalition said in a statement.

Kyl was a staunch proponent of relocating the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which U.S. President Donald Trump facilitated in May. Additionally, Kyl was an advocate of U.S. funding toward the Arrow missile-defense system and pressured former President Barack Obama against recognizing a unilateral Palestinian state.