Former Texas Democratic Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, who served in Congress for almost 30 years, has died.
On Sunday, Johnson’s son announced the news of her passing in a Facebook post.
“I am heartbroken to share the news that my mother, Eddie Bernice Johnson, has passed away. She was a remarkable and loving mother, mother-in-law, grandmother and great grandmother, (sic) as well as a trailblazer and public servant,” he wrote in the caption of a photo of his mother.
He added, “While we mourn the loss of an extraordinary woman, we celebrate her life and legacy. She will be deeply missed.”
Johnson was 88 years old.
President Joe Biden honored the former legislator in a statement from the White House.
“Throughout her life, and as the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, she was an icon and mentor to generations of public servants, through whom her legacy of resilience and purpose will endure,” Biden wrote of his late friend.
Johnson was the first African American and also first woman to be the chair of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the first black woman to be elected to state public office from Dallas, Texas, per CNN.
Vice President Kamala Harris also paid tribute to Johnson in a statement from the White House.
“Throughout her long career in public service, she was always clear-eyed about what she was fighting for: the right of every person in Dallas and across the country to live free from discrimination and to have the opportunity to live up to their full potential,” Harris shared.
She continued, “I had the privilege to serve alongside her in the Congressional Black Caucus and know that so many have benefited from her tireless work, myself included. Her legacy and leadership will be felt for generations to come.”
Johnson, born in 1935 in Waco, Texas, was a nurse before entering politics. She received her nursing certificate in 1955 and served as a Texas state lawmaker from 1972 until her election to the U.S. House in 1992, according to her congressional biography.
