With a month to go before the US presidential election, Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden cancelled campaign events for another two days on Sunday after the death of his mother-in-law.
Mr Biden, a Delaware senator, will resume campaigning on Wednesday, an aide said, ending a five-day break for personal reasons that began following his debate last week with Republican rival Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska.
Mr Biden (65), initially put his campaign on hold on Friday to have time to bid farewell to his son, Beau, a member of the Delaware National Guard who is heading off to the Iraq war.
Mr Biden then cancelled campaign events for Saturday and yesterday when a hospice advised that his mother-in-law, Bonny Jean Jacobs, was severely ill and urged relatives to stay close by. Yesterday, she died after a long illness and Biden campaign events for today and tomorrow were also cancelled.
"The family is at home in Wilmington and we are grateful for the way everyone has respected their privacy," Biden spokesman David Wade said in a brief statement.