Sylvester Turner died at 70 – American politician
Biography and cause of death of Sylvester Turner
American attorney and politician Sylvester Turner was born on September 27, 1954, and passed away on March 5, 2025. From January 20, 2025, until his death on March 20, 2025, he was the congressman for Texas’s 18th congressional district. The 62nd mayor of Houston, Turner was a Democrat from 2016 to 2024. From 1989 until 2016, he was a member of the Texas House of Representatives.
Although he was born and brought up in Houston, Turner went to both Harvard Law School and the University of Houston. In 1991, he was a mayoral candidate for Houston, but he lost to Bob Lanier in the runoff. He finished third in 2003, his second consecutive loss, and did not go to the playoffs.
In the most closely contested Houston mayoral race ever, Turner edged out Bill King by less than two percent in 2015. Turner defeated Tony Buzbee, a more conservative candidate, and was re-elected mayor on December 14, 2019. After Sheila Jackson Lee passed away in 2024, Turner declared his intention to run for Congress and received the nomination at the next convention.
After winning the election in November 2024, he began his tenure in January 2025. He was a member of both the Science, Space, and Technology Committee and the Homeland Security Committee. Just sixty-one days after becoming president, on March 5, 2025, Turner passed away.
Sylvester Turner Earlier years
The sixth of Eddie and Ruby Mae Turner’s nine children, Sylvester Turner, was born in Houston, Texas, on September 27, 1954. Eddie was a professional painter. He grew up in the Acres Homes neighborhood in northwest Houston. His mother took a job as a housekeeper at the downtown Houston Rice Hotel after Turner’s father passed away when he was thirteen years old. Turner said that her positivity and tenacity had a major impact on his career and personal growth.
As part of integration efforts, Klein High School bused in Black pupils like Turner, who had previously attended an all-white school. Turner was the valedictorian of her class, a student body president, and a debate winner during her time at Klein. Thereafter, he earned a BA in political science from the University of Houston in 1976 after serving as student senator and graduating with honors.
Thereafter, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School in 1980 after serving as a finalist in the Ames Moot Court Competition. Turner joined the Houston chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha and was inducted into Alpha Eta Lambda.
Sylvester Turner’s Legal career
When Turner finished law school, he became a partner at Fulbright & Jaworski. He established Barnes & Turner, a business and corporate law practice, in 1983. For a long time, Turner was a prominent Houston immigration lawyer.
Sylvester Turner has spoken at seminar sessions at South Texas College of Law and the Continuing Legal Education Programs at the University of Houston Law School, in addition to his work as an adjunct professor at Thurgood Marshall School of Law.
Sylvester Turner Political career
In the 1984 Democratic primary for Harris County Commissioner, Precinct 1, Turner faced off against El Franco Lee, who emerged victorious. He served in the Texas House of Representatives from House District 139 in Harris County for four years until being re-elected in 2014. Turner attempted and failed to become the mayor of Houston twice during that period, in 1991 and 2003.
Wayne Dolcefino of KTRK-TV conducted an investigative investigation in 1991 during Turner’s mayoral campaign in Houston, casting doubt on his innocence in relation to a complex insurance fraud scheme. Turner was defeated in the race by the controversy that ensued. The presiding court lowered Turner’s first $5.5 million libel settlement judgment against Dolcefino and KTRK to $3.25 million when she sued them. KTRK decided to file an appeal.
On the grounds that the media have enhanced legal rights under the First Amendment, the Texas Supreme Court reversed the monetary judgment. Both of these broadcasts, however, were deemed false and defamatory by the court.
President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan and Turner met in January 2017.
For over 25 years, Turner was a fixture in the Texas House of Representatives. Among his many roles were those of member of the Legislative Budget Board, vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee, chair of the General Government, Judiciary, Public Safety & Criminal Justice Subcommittee, and chair of the House State Affairs Committee. He was also the leader of the Greater Houston Area Legislative Delegation and the Texas Legislative Black Caucus.
Turner advocated for legislation that would bring medical professionals to neglected communities, wanted to double the current state funding for mental health services in Harris County—from $32 million to $200 million—and sought to enhance financing for legal assistance for low-income Texans.
After receiving 31% of the vote in the first round, Turner barely defeated Bill King in a runoff to become Houston’s mayor in 2015. After eight years in service, he was re-elected in 2019.
Sylvester Turner provided aid to Puerto Ricans impacted by Hurricane Maria in October 2017.
During the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Turner supported Michael Bloomberg in February of that year. Joe Biden, the former vice president, became his new endorser in March of 2020.
Upon the conclusion of Turner’s eight-year term as mayor on January 1, 2024, the city’s financial situation was precarious. Annual expenditures exceeded revenues by $100 million to $200 million for the city. Turner nominated Sheila Jackson Lee to succeed him as Houston mayor in 2023; Lee was defeated in the runoff by a margin of almost 30 percentage points.
Sylvester Turner declared his intention to run for the 18th congressional district of Texas in the Democratic primary after Sheila Jackson Lee died, which left the seat vacant, and was nominated at the convention. He became the next president in January 2025 after winning the election. Before passing away on March 5, he spent 60 days serving in Congress.
Sylvester Turner, Democratic congressman and former Houston mayor, dies at 70
Sylvester Turner Harvey, the storm
Some people felt that Mayor Turner should have suggested an evacuation plan following Hurricane Harvey, but he chose not to. In response to the criticism, he brought up the 2005 Hurricane Rita evacuation, which included the deaths of many people and heavy traffic, as well as the difficulty of evacuating “6.5 million” people. Opponents have countered by saying that 6.5 million people could have remained put if just tens of thousands in flood zones or other high-risk areas had been relocated instead.
Sylvester Turner Stands on political issues
Apps that facilitate ridesharing
Turner called for more regulation of ridesharing companies like Uber in 2016. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) statistics from 2016 show that Texas had the highest number of drunk driving deaths in the nation. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), 1,438 Texans lost their lives in drunk driving accidents in 2016.
Sylvester Turner LGBTQ+ equality
After claiming to have “evolved” on LGBT matters, Turner was rated an “A+” by Equality Texas in 2015 and designated one of the top ten best members of the Texas House on LGBT issues.
In the 2015 Houston mayoral runoff election, Turner clarified that he was “100 percent” dedicated to bringing back the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO). He went on to criticize Bill King for claiming he would not bring up the subject of HERO again and for seeking support from the Campaign for Houston.
Sylvester Turner: Safety measures for buyers
During a January 2019 event hosted by New America, Turner discussed Houston’s journey towards becoming a smart city.
Turner supported deregulation of the Texas electric utility market in 1999 so that consumers would have more options and competition. Throughout his tenure in the legislature, he remained committed to safeguarding Texans’ interests. He supported legislation that would have prevented gas companies from severing service during cold spells, limited rate hikes for specific projects (like electric pole and wire construction) without prior approval from state regulators, and mandated that the Public Utility Commission perform cost-benefit analyses on utility company proposals that would increase annual consumer electricity costs by more than $100 million.
To prevent power providers from imposing “minimum usage fees” on consumers who consumed insufficient power, Turner introduced a bill during the 84th session. Turner was also in favor of a measure that would give the Public Utility Commission the authority to issue emergency cease-and-desist orders to businesses whose activities might disrupt the state’s power supply without involving the courts.
As part of a campaign to promote “LITE-UP Texas,” a program “authorized by the Texas Legislature through which participants could reduce the monthly cost of electric service by 82%,” he became involved in the 83rd session, which aimed to recruit low-income Texans. This discount scheme was extended for a further two years, to the end of 2017, by a law he introduced in the 84th session. Additionally, he was a co-author on a measure that would make it mandatory for multi-family dwelling residents to get notifications when their power payment is overdue.
Sylvester Turner General instruction
“Reduce benefits for future public school employees and discourage early retirement.” That was the plan he opposed in 2004. Additionally, he blasted the investment managers of the Teachers Retirement Fund for pocketing more than $8.2 million in bonuses despite the state’s school budget cuts and the fund’s faltering investment performance.
Turner opposed a 2011 plan that would have slashed $4 billion in education funding—a 6% reduction across the board—to support better schools in Texas. Turner, when serving in the legislature, cast a vote against a bill that would have authorized salary cuts, furlough days, and higher student-teacher ratios in school districts. Along with other Texas House members, he was against a corporate tax cut that would have cut into money for public schools.
Sylvester Turner The Visa Process
Mayor Turner has already said that Houston would not cooperate with ICE in its immigration sweeps, although Texas has outlawed sanctuary towns.
U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner has passed away. Turner replaced Sheila Jackson Lee, who passed last year.
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin.bsky.social) 2025-03-05T15:15:57.197Z
Sylvester Turner Medical treatment
Sylvester Turner is an ACA supporter who opposed joining the Interstate Health Care Compact, a way out of conventional ACA participation, and who brought a bill to expand Medicaid in Texas as a result of the ACA. Turner cautioned her colleagues and lawmakers about the possible reaction from residents in the event that the state declined to expand Medicaid, despite the substantial return on investment that expansion offered.
His 2007 legislation expanding access to the children’s health insurance program was one of his key triumphs in the House. Medical trauma care facilities will receive the full amount of money allocated for trauma centers in 2015, thanks to legislation that Turner enacted.
Over the next two years, the Greater Houston region will get $25 million thanks to the law. Of this amount, $10 million will go to Memorial Hermann, and $11 million will go to Ben Taub. People with severe and chronic mental illness would be able to get Medicaid treatment if they are re-institutionalizing or at risk of being institutionalized, according to legislation that Turner filed during the 84th Legislature. The provision would also apply to those who are transferring from institutions to the community.
Contributions to COVID-19 safety and community-based health care were among the many public health activities that Turner often attended.
Sylvester Turner Termination of pregnancy
Sylvester Turner has been a pro-choice activist for quite some time. To ensure that women seeking abortions get a sonogram at least 24 hours prior to the operations, he voted against the proposal. Sylvester Turner was also an advocate for preserving financing for Planned Parenthood and other family planning programs. Turner opposed a Senate bill that would have restricted abortions after 20 weeks and imposed stricter regulations on abortion clinics.
Sylvester Turner also proposed an amendment to the bill that would have made the state pay for the renovations that abortion clinics would have to make to become surgical centers, and he voted against that as well. The El Paso Times hailed Turner in 2013 for being a “lion of pro-abortion rights.”
Sylvester Turner The field of criminal justice
Sylvester Turner fought against efforts to restrict litigation against manufacturers of firearms and ammunition, legalize concealed carry on college campuses, and strip local governments of the power to prohibit weapons on public property in the name of gun control. Reducing the number of training hours needed to get a concealed handgun license was another issue that he was against. The use of state monies to enforce federal weapons rules was forbidden under his measure, which he supported. Turner also said that the “pick-a-pal system” should be abolished. Under this system, commissioners appointed by judges are empowered to choose grand jurors at will.
Sylvester Turner Enduring Homelessness
Ending chronic homelessness in Houston was a top priority for Turner’s administration when he was mayor. Turner has requested that the Houston police begin strictly implementing an ordinance that forbids the distribution of food to anyone experiencing homelessness. In response to their efforts to feed Houston’s homeless population, the Houston Police Department issued 44 citations to the Food Not Bombs volunteer organization, with a maximum punishment of $2,000 per citation.
In his private life, Turner was wed to Cheryl Turner, an ex-assistant district attorney for Harris County, from 1983 until her death in late 1991. In March of 2022, their daughter Ashley Page Turner wed Jimmie Captain. They had a daughter together.
From 2018 through 2023 (excluding 2020), Turner presided over the opening ceremonies of Anime Matsuri in his capacity as mayor. During this time, he also appeared in cosplay as various anime characters, including Akatsuki from Naruto in 2018, Goku from Dragon Ball in 2019, Kyōjurō Rengoku from Demon Slayer in 2021, Ichigo Kurosaki from Bleach in 2022, and Luffy from One Piece in 2023.
Sylvester Turner Death and disease
Sylvester Turner revealed in November 2022 that he had undergone surgery and six weeks of radiation therapy after being diagnosed with bone cancer in the summer.
After getting medical treatment, Turner was able to attend President Trump’s speech to Congress that evening after becoming unwell in the afternoon on March 4, 2025, while working at the Cannon House Office Building complex. After a short stay in the hospital, he was released and returned to his home in Washington, DC, where he passed away at the age of 70 in the wee hours of March 5. His death in office makes him unique among members of the 119th Congress; he is also the second sitting congressman from Texas’s 18th district to pass away in the last year, after Sheila Jackson Lee.
In honor of Turner and their relationship, Houston Mayor John Whitmire had all flags flown at half-staff across the city. From now until dawn on March 8, 2025, flags throughout the state of Texas will fly at half-staff in honor of Turner, per an order from Governor Greg Abbott.
70 year old congressman Sylvester Turner died in office last night. He was elected in November to replace Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who also died in office at age 74.
— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein.bsky.social) 2025-03-05T15:12:21.365Z
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