A Democratic member of Congress died Tuesday, two months after being sworn into office and just a year after his predecessor died while serving in the same position.
Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner of Texas died at 70, according to the Texas Tribune. He had been sworn into office in January.
Turner was a former mayor of Houston who previously served as a state legislator.
Turner had been elected to Congress last year to represent the 18th Congressional District in Texas, which had been held by former Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who died last year in office after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.
In 2022, Turner said he had been battling bone cancer, but in 2024, he said he was free of cancer.
“We’re saddened to hear of the sudden passing of Congressman Sylvester Turner, who represented Texas’s 18th District. He served his community faithfully, not only as a member of Congress, but as a former state legislator and a mayor of Houston. Our prayers are with his family and constituents as they mourn his loss,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a post on X.
We’re saddened to hear of the sudden passing of Congressman Sylvester Turner, who represented Texas’s 18th District.
He served his community faithfully, not only as a member of Congress, but as a former state legislator and a mayor of Houston.
Our prayers are with his family…
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) March 5, 2025
Turner, who served as Houston’s mayor from 2016 through 2024, had appeared Saturday at the RodeoHouston Parade, according to KHOU-TV.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Turner was taken to a Washington, D.C. hospital Tuesday night and later died.
“He never forgot where he came from. That’s remarkable … in public service,” Whitmire said, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In memory of Turner, Houston will have its flags at half-staff.
“This comes as a shock to everyone,” Whitmire said, according to the Texas Tribune.
“I would ask Houstonians to come together, pray for his family, join us in celebrating this remarkable public servant. Celebrate his life, which we will be doing,” he said.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said House Democrats were “shocked and saddened” by Turner’s death.
“Though he was newly elected to the Congress, Rep. Turner had a long and distinguished career in public service and spent decades fighting for the people of Houston,” Jeffries said.
Turner had attended President Donald Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress, Jeffries said, adding that Turner was a “fighter until the end.”
Prior to serving as Houston mayor, Turner had served 27 years as a state legislator.
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