March 5 (UPI) -- Rep. Sylvester Turner has died, according to a statement from the City of Houston Wednesday. He was a former Houston mayor and was 70.
Current Houston Mayor John Whitmire announced Wednesday during a council meeting that he had died.
In a statement on X, Whitmire said Turner was a remarkable public servant who affected millions of people.
Whitmire wrote, "He rose from poverty but never forgot where he came from. It is a terrible loss for the city and a personal loss for me. I ask Houstonians to celebrate his life."
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Turner was working in Washington, D.C., Tuesday and died at a hospital later that night.
Turner's X account said he was in Washington Tuesday during the joint session of Congress and had a message for President Donald Trump, "Don't mess with Medicaid."
Rep. Al Green, who was ejected for a verbal protest from the joint session, said, "When I heard it, I fell to my knees. I can't believe it. We were on the floor together last night. You never know for whom the bell will toll next."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Turner's fellow Democratic members of Congress held a moment of silence as Jeffries called Turner's death tragic and unexpected.
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in statement, "Cecilia and I are saddened to hear of the passing of Congressman Sylvester Turner. Congressman Turner was a man of character who served his fellow Texans for more than 36 years. From his time as State Representative, to Mayor of Houston, and finally representing Texas' 18th Congressional District, Congressman Turner leaves behind a legacy of service to our great state. Congressman Turner will be missed, and our prayers go out to his family and loved ones during this time of grief."
There will be a special election to fill Turner's congressional term, which ends in January 2027.
Turner came out of retirement to win a primary to replace Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee when she died in 2024.
The cause of Turner's death hasn't been released. He had been treated for bone cancer but told the Texas tribune in 2022 he was cancer free.
Turner was Houston mayor during the deadly Astroworld Music Festival tragedy in 2021. Ten people died and hundreds were injured during rapper Travis Scott's performance.
Turner said then, "We owe it to the family members, all of those who attended and quite frankly the city as a whole, to the first responders, all of them. How did this happen?"
Houston City Council member and Turner friend Carolyn Evans-Shabazz remembered him as a "tremendous family man" and added that even when someone disagreed with him Turner always had a sense of humor.
