Overview

• Sylvester Turner, a Democrat representing Texas' 18th Congressional District, passed away on March 5, 2025, at the age of 70, just two months into his first term in Congress.
• Turner attended President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress the night before his death and posted a message advocating for Medicaid protection shortly before the event.
• The cause of death has not been officially confirmed, though Turner had previously battled bone cancer and was declared cancer-free in 2022.
• Turner served as Houston’s mayor for eight years, leading the city through significant challenges like Hurricane Harvey and the COVID-19 pandemic, and had a 27-year tenure in the Texas House of Representatives.
• Governor Greg Abbott is expected to call a special election to fill Turner’s congressional seat, a Democratic stronghold previously held by Sheila Jackson Lee, who passed away in 2024.