John Lowell Burton

John Lowell Burton (1977)

John Lowell Burton (born December 15, 1932 in Cincinnati , Ohio ) is an American politician . Between 1974 and 1983 he represented the state of California in the US House of Representatives . Since April 2009 he has been chairman of the Democratic Party in California.

Career

John Burton is the younger brother of Congressman Phillip Burton (1926–1983) and the brother-in-law of his widow, Congressman Sala Burton (1925–1987). He attended Lincoln High School in San Francisco until 1950 and then until 1954 the San Francisco State College . Between 1954 and 1956 he served in the US Army . After completing a law degree at the University of San Francisco Law School and being admitted to the bar in 1961, he began to work in this profession. At the same time he embarked on a political career as a member of the Democratic Party. Between 1965 and 1974 he was a member of the California State Assembly . In 1973 and 1974 he was first chairman of his party in California. Between 1968 and 1980 he participated as a delegate at all Democratic National Conventions .

After the resignation of MP William S. Mailliard , Burton was elected as his successor to the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC , where he took up his new mandate on June 4, 1974 in the due by-election for the sixth seat of California . After four re-elections, he could remain in Congress until January 3, 1983 . Since 1975 he has represented the fifth district of his state as the successor to his brother Phillip. It was practically just a switch of constituencies because Phillip Burton then represented the sixth district in Congress. Early in his tenure in Congress, John Burton saw the climax of the Watergate affair with the resignation of President Richard Nixon . In 1982 he renounced another candidacy. Then his brother Phillip returned once more to the fifth constituency, which he represented in Congress until his death on April 10, 1983. The fifth district remained in the hands of the Burtons, because Phillips widow Sala Burton took over the mandate and was able to exercise it until February 1, 1987.

After his time in the US House of Representatives, John Burton practiced as a lawyer again. From 1988 to 1996 he was once again a member of the State Assembly ; between 1996 and 2004 he was a member of the California Senate . He founded the John Burton Foundation to help homeless children in California. In 2009 he was re-elected President of the Democratic Party in California to succeed Arthur Torres .

Web links

• John Lowell Burton in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)