John Conyers

John Conyers
Official portrait, 2017
44th Dean of the United States House of Representatives
In office January 3, 2015 – December 5, 2017
Preceded by	John Dingell
Succeeded by	Don Young
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan
In office January 3, 1965 – December 5, 2017
Preceded by	Lucien Nedzi
Succeeded by	Brenda Jones
Constituency	1st district (1965–1993) 14th district (1993–2013) 13th district (2013–2017)
Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee
In office January 3, 2011 – December 5, 2017
Preceded by	Lamar Smith
Succeeded by	Jerry Nadler
In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Hamilton Fish IV
Succeeded by	Lamar Smith
Chair of the House Judiciary Committee
In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Jim Sensenbrenner
Succeeded by	Lamar Smith
Chair of the House Oversight Committee
In office January 3, 1989 – January 3, 1995
Preceded by	Jack Brooks
Succeeded by	William F. Clinger Jr.
Personal details
Born	John James Conyers Jr. (1929-05-16)May 16, 1929 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Died	October 27, 2019(2019-10-27) (aged 90) Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Other political affiliations	Democratic Socialists of America
Spouse	Monica Esters ​ (m. 1990)​
Children	2
Relatives	Ian Conyers (grand-nephew)
Education	Wayne State University (BA, LLB)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	US Army
Years of service	1948–1950 1950–1957
Unit	Army National Guard
Battles/wars	Korean War
John Conyers's voice John Conyers introduces an amendment to the Y2K Act Recorded May 12, 1999

John James Conyers Jr.^[a] (May 16, 1929 – October 27, 2019) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as a U.S. representative from Michigan from 1965 to 2017. Conyers was the sixth-longest serving member of Congress and the longest-serving African American member of Congress in history.

After serving in the Korean War, Conyers became active in the civil rights movement. He also served as an aide to Congressman John Dingell before winning election to the House in 1964. He co-founded the Congressional Black Caucus in 1969 and established a reputation as one of the most left-wing members of Congress. Conyers joined the Congressional Progressive Caucus after it was founded in 1991. Conyers supported creation of a single-payer healthcare system and sponsored the United States National Health Care Act. He also sponsored a bill to establish Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday, and was the first congressperson to introduce legislation in support of reparations for the descendants of African American slavery.

Conyers ran for Mayor of Detroit in 1989 and 1993, but he was defeated in the primary both times.

Conyers served as the ranking Democratic member on the House Committee on the Judiciary from 1995 to 2007 and again from 2011 to 2017. He served as chairman of that committee from 2007 to 2011 and as chairman of the House Oversight Committee from 1989 to 1995. As the longest-serving current member of Congress, Conyers was the dean of the House of Representatives from 2015 to 2017. By November 2017, he was the last remaining member of Congress who had served since the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson. In the wake of allegations that he had sexually harassed female staff members and secretly used taxpayer money to settle a harassment claim, Conyers resigned from Congress on December 5, 2017.
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