Ashford was a Democrat from 1982 until 1988 and again from 2013 until his death in 2022.[1] He was also a Republican from 1971 until 1982 and again from 1989 until 2011. He was also an Independent from 2011 to 2013.
Ashford lost his re-election in 2016 to Republican Don Bacon. He ran again in 2018, but lost the Democratic nomination.[2]
In May 2019, Ashford was hospitalized with pulmonary edema caused by blood clots.[3] In February 2022, Ashford announced he had been diagnosed with brain cancer. He died on April 19, 2022 at the age of 72.[4]