JUST IN: US Congressman Donald Payne Jr Dead At 65

U.S. Congressman Donald Payne Jr dead at 65 according to reports available to GlobalCurrent24.com.

Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-Newark), a highly personable, low-key but effective, progressive six-term congressman from New Jersey who was passionate about social justice and client service, died today. He was 65.

Payne had a heart attack on April 6 and has been unconscious and on a ventilator since then at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. He has faced a number of health challenges in recent years, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and renal problems that necessitate regular dialysis.

He is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Payne’s father, Rep. Donald Payne Sr. (D-Newark), was a pioneer in New Jersey politics. He became New Jersey’s first Black representative when he was elected to Congress in 1988, winning an open seat after repeatedly opposing Rep. Peter W. Rodino (D-Newark) in the Democratic primary in a district with a majority of Black people.

Following his father’s death from colon cancer in March 2012 at the age of 77, Payne ran for the United States House of Representatives and won a competitive primary in New Jersey’s 10th District.

As a Democrat, Payne checked all the progressive voters’ boxes: he backed Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, racial justice, equal rights for everyone, reproductive freedom, public transportation, and free college.

Payne became a national leader in a push to support clean drinking water projects around the country, resulting in the adoption of a House infrastructure plan that contained $55 billion for the nationwide replacement of lead pipes. Nearly $200 million was spent to replace more than 24,000 LED pipes in Newark.

Payne sponsored the Safer Neighborhoods Gun Buyback Act of 2019, which aimed to minimize community gun violence.
Payne voted in favor of the Build Back Better Act, which aims to make childcare, housing, and prescription pharmaceuticals more accessible while also combating climate change. He backed efforts to expand the Voting Rights Act, provide citizenship to undocumented immigrants, and enact the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

Under a Democratic majority, Payne chaired the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials. He previously chaired the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery.

This is a developing story and all updates will be shared as well.

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