Strom Thurmond

Strom Thurmond
Thurmond in 1961
United States Senator
from South Carolina
In office
November 7, 1956 – January 3, 2003
Preceded byThomas A. Wofford
Succeeded byLindsey Graham
In office
December 24, 1954 – April 4, 1956
Preceded byCharles E. Daniel
Succeeded byThomas A. Wofford
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
In office
January 20, 2001 – June 6, 2001
Preceded byRobert Byrd
Succeeded byRobert Byrd
In office
January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2001
Preceded byRobert Byrd
Succeeded byRobert Byrd
In office
January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1987
Preceded byWarren Magnuson
Succeeded byJohn C. Stennis
President pro tempore emeritus of the United States Senate
In office
June 6, 2001 – January 3, 2003
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byRobert Byrd
103rd Governor of South Carolina
In office
January 21, 1947 – January 16, 1951
LieutenantGeorge Bell Timmerman Jr.
Preceded byRansome Judson Williams
Succeeded byJames F. Byrnes
Member of the South Carolina Senate
from the Edgefield County district
In office
January 10, 1933 – January 14, 1938
Preceded byThomas Greneker
Succeeded byWilliam Yonce
Personal details
Born
James Strom Thurmond

(1902-12-05)December 5, 1902
Edgefield, South Carolina, U.S.
DiedJune 26, 2003(2003-06-26) (aged 100)
Edgefield, South Carolina, U.S.
Resting placeEdgefield Village Cemetery
Political party
Other political
affiliations
Dixiecrat (1948)
Spouses
  • Jean Crouch
    (m. 1947; died 1960)
  • Nancy Moore
    (m. 1968; sep. 1991)
Children5, including Essie, Strom Jr., and Paul
EducationClemson University (BS)
Signature
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Years of service1942–1964[1]
RankMajor general
UnitUnited States Army Reserve
Battles/wars
Awards

James Strom Thurmond, Sr. (December 5, 1902 – June 26, 2003) was an American politician who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to 2003. Before his 48 years as a senator, he served as the 103rd governor of South Carolina from 1947 to 1951. Thurmond was a member of the Democratic Party until 1964 when he joined the Republican Party for the remainder of his legislative career. He also ran for president in 1948 as the Dixiecrat candidate, receiving over a million votes and winning four states.

A staunch opponent of civil rights legislation in the 1950s and 1960s, Thurmond conducted the longest speaking filibuster ever by a lone senator, at 24 hours and 18 minutes in length, in opposition to the Civil Rights Act of 1957.[2] In the 1960s, he voted against the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Despite his support for racial segregation, Thurmond denied the accusation that he was a racist by insisting he was a supporter of states' rights and an opponent of excessive federal authority.[3] Thurmond switched parties ahead of the 1964 United States presidential election, saying that the Democratic Party no longer represented people like him, and endorsed Republican nominee Barry Goldwater, who also opposed the Civil Rights Act.[4][5] By the 1970s, Thurmond started to moderate his stance on race, but continued to defend his prior support for segregation based on states' rights and Southern society at the time.[6]

Thurmond served three times as President pro tempore of the United States Senate, and chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1981 to 1987 and the Senate Armed Services Committee from 1995 to 1999. He retired in 2003 as the only member of either chamber of Congress to reach the age of 100 while still in office and the oldest-serving senator. His 48 years as a senator, a record at the time, is the fourth-longest in U.S. history behind Robert Byrd, Daniel Inouye, and Patrick Leahy.[7] At 14 years, Thurmond was also the longest-serving Dean of the United States Senate in political history.

  1. ^ Congress. Congressional Record, V. 148, Pt. 14, October 2, 2002 to October 9, 2002. Government Printing Office. p. 19478. GGKEY:U014S5SKZWX.
  2. ^ In contrast to so-called "silent" filibusters, see Fisk, Catherine; Chemerinsky, Erwin (1997). "The Filibuster". Duke Law Journal. Stanford Law Review. pp. 181–254. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
  3. ^ Clymer, Adam (June 27, 2003). "Strom Thurmond, Foe of Integration, Dies at 100". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  4. ^ "Thurmond to Bolt Democrats Today; South Carolinian Will Join G.O.P. and Aid Goldwater" (PDF). The New York Times. September 16, 1964. p. 12. Retrieved December 27, 2010. Both senators have opposed the Administration on such matters as civil rights...
  5. ^ Benen, Steve (May 21, 2010). "The Party of Civil Rights". Washington Monthly. Archived from the original on April 12, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
  6. ^ Noah, Timothy (December 16, 2002). "The Legend of Strom's Remorse: a Washington Lie is Laid to Rest". Slate. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  7. ^ "Robert Byrd to Become Longest-Serving Senator in History". Fox News. Associated Press. June 11, 2006. Archived from the original on October 19, 2006. Retrieved December 24, 2006.