Strom Thurmond

James Strom Thurmond (December 5, 1902 – June 26, 2003) represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to April 1956 and November 1956 to 1964 as a Democrat and from 1964 to 2003 as a Republican. He served as Senator through his 90s, and left office at age 100, as the longest-serving senator ever.

Senate career

In 1954 he became the only person ever to be elected to the Senate as a write-in candidate. He resigned in 1956 to fulfill a pledge of his write-in campaign to face a contested primary, won the primary, and was elected to the Senate vacancy caused by his resignation. The rest of his career in the Senate remained uninterrupted until his retirement 46 years later, despite his mid-career party switch.

Related Topics:
1954 - Write-in candidate - 1956

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Thurmond supported racial segregation with the longest filibuster ever on the Senate floor, speaking for 24 hours and 18 minutes in an unsuccessful attempt to derail the Civil Rights Act of 1957. He began by reading the entire text of each state's election laws. Thurmond took a long steam bath beforehand to dehydrate himself. This way he could drink water and avoid having to go to the bathroom.

Related Topics:
Filibuster - Civil Rights Act of 1957

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On September 16, 1964; Thurmond switched his party affiliation, becoming a Republican in protest of the Democrats' support and President Johnson's shepherding of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Thurmond played an important role in building Republican support in the South, which was overwhelmingly Democrat prior to the early 1960s. He campaigned on behalf of Richard Nixon to support the Republicans' Southern Strategy, undoubtedly bringing in Southern voters who otherwise would have voted for segregationalist candidate George Wallace in the 1968 election.

Related Topics:
September 16 - 1964 - Switched his party affiliation - President Johnson - Civil Rights Act of 1964 - 1960s - Richard Nixon - Southern Strategy - George Wallace - 1968 election

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In the 1970s, many believe that Thurmond had a change of heart and endorsed integration earlier than many other southern politicians. Some believe this change of policy was a calculated political move designed to extend his Senate career in a changing social environment. In 2004, the Washington Post reported that a Thurmond staffer advised him to abandon his segregationist views after one of his proteges, Albert Watson was badly defeated in a race for governor of South Carolina. Watson ran what many consider to be the last openly racist campaign in South Carolina, and Thurmond had strongly supported him. Regardless of his otivations, he would later hire black staffers, enroll his daughter in an integrated public school, and support blacks for federal judgeships.

Related Topics:
1970s - 2004 - Washington Post - Albert Watson - Governor of South Carolina - Black - Federal judge

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Thurmond became President Pro Tem of the Senate in 1981, and held the largely ceremonial post for three terms, alternating with his longtime rival Robert Byrd depending on the partisan composition of the Senate. On December 5, 1996, Thurmond became the oldest serving member of the U.S. Senate, and on May 25, 1997, he became the longest serving member (41 years and 10 months). He cast his 15,000th vote in September 1998.

Related Topics:
President Pro Tem of the Senate - 1981 - Robert Byrd - December 5 - 1996 - May 25 - 1997 - 1998

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There was some controversy towards the end of Thurmond's Senate career over his mental condition. Some, including some close friends, claimed that he had lost mental acuity and should not have been serving in the Senate. Concern was also raised whenever he served as president pro tem of the Senate, which is fourth in line for the presidency. However, his supporters claimed that, while he lacked physical stamina due to his age, mentally he remained aware and attentive and maintained a very active work schedule in showing up for every floor vote. Thurmond did not seek re-election in 2002. (While Thurmond was the oldest serving Senator, he was not the longest-lived individual to have previously served in the Senate. This honor is reserved for the scarcely-known Cornelius Cole, who reached 102 in 1924, though he had left the Senate many years before.

Related Topics:
Fourth in line for the presidency - 2002 - Cornelius Cole - 1924

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Strom Thurmond left the Senate in January of 2003, as America's longest-serving senator. On June 26, 2003, he died at 9:45 p.m at the age of 100, at a hospital in his hometown of Edgefield, where he had been living since retiring.

Related Topics:
2003 - June 26 - Edgefield

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Shortly after Thurmond's death, on December 14, 2003, Essie Mae Washington-Williams publicly revealed that she was Strom Thurmond's illegitimate daughter, ending a long agreement to conceal the fact. She was born to a black maid in the family household, Carrie Butler, on October 12, 1925, when Butler was 16 and Thurmond was 22. After Ms. Washington-Williams came forward, the Thurmond family publicly acknowledged her parentage. Supposedly many close friends and staff members had long suspected this or something like it to have been the case, stating that Thurmond had long seemed to take a great amount of interest in Ms. Washington-Williams and that she was granted a degree of access to the Senator more appropriate to a family member than to a member of the public or a political ally.

Related Topics:
December 14 - 2003 - Essie Mae Washington-Williams - Illegitimate - Black - October 12 - 1925

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