He was named the chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform on January 3, 2019, and served until his death in October that year. He is survived by two daughters, Jennifer and Aria, and a son, who he did not often speak about publicly and whose name is not known. At the time of his death in October 2019, he was serving as the chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and was leading the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. He then obtained a law degree from the University of Maryland. Chairman Cummings guaranteed a voice to so many who would otherwise not have one, and stood as a symbol for the heights one could reach if they paid no mind to obstacles, naysayers and hate. Cummings’ health had failed him in recent years. He died from "complications concerning longstanding health challenges" at Johns Hopkins Hospital on October 17, 2019, and was laid in state prior to his funeral at the New Psalmist Baptist Church, Baltimore, on October 25. He rose to the ranks of the Maryland House of Delegates before winning his seat in Congress in a special election in 1996 to replace former representative Kweisi Mfume, who left the seat to lead the NAACP. “She had fought and seen people harmed, beaten, trying to vote. He is … While still working as an attorney, Elijah Cummings served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 1983 to 1996 following a successful campaign by his predecessor Lena King Lee to launch his political career. Getty Cummings, who was a member of the New Psalmist Baptist Church, told The Sun that his parents made religion an important part of his life. Elijah Eugene Cummings was born on January 18, 1951, Baltimore, Maryland, United States, as the third of seven children of Ruth Elma and Robert Cummings, both of whom previously worked as sharecroppers in South Carolina. That’s not right. Cummings’ seat, which includes about half of Baltimore City, as well as parts of Baltimore and Howard counties, in the House of Representatives will be filled through a special election set by Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. Elijah Cummings was born January 18, 1951, in Baltimore, Maryland, as one of seven children to Ruth Elma Cochran Cummings and Robert Cummings. Elijah Cummings’ first marriage was to Joyce Matthews, with whom he had a daughter named Jennifer J. Cummings, but according to a 1999 report by the 'Baltimore Sun', they lived separately since 1982 without getting a divorce. According to The New York Times, Cummings’ parents were born as sharecroppers in South Carolina and they moved north to Maryland to provide better opportunities for their family. In the Maryland General Assembly, he pushed for a ban on inner-city billboard ads of alcohol and tobacco in Baltimore, which was the first such prohibition in a large US city. Cummings practiced law as a private attorney for 19 years before being elected to Congress in 1996. Sometimes you get them all in one. He later married Maya Rockeymoore, a policy consultant and chairwoman of the Maryland Democratic Party in 2008. At the 2008 congressional panel hearings on steroids, he was praised for demanding to know if witness Mark McGwire, a professional baseball player, was "taking the Fifth", i.e. He began law practice with the small Baltimore law firm of Michael A. Christianson and eventually established his own firm, Cummings and Dashiell. Joyce Matthews was the first wife of Elijah Cummings, an American politician who previously served in the Maryland House of Delegates. Months later in November 1996, he secured his place in the US House of Representatives in the proper 1996 congressional election, when he defeated Kondner again with a slightly bigger margin of 83.5%. He taught us nothing was impossible, despite his limited education. “Chairman Elijah E. Cummings and I shared a city, an alma mater, a love of the law and a life of public service. He recently played a central role in the investigation of Congress on the president’s attempt to get Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden, According to the Baltimore Sun, “Cummings had not participated in a roll call vote since Sept. 11. Elijah Cummings was born January 18, 1951, in Baltimore, Maryland, as one of seven children to Ruth Elma Cochran Cummings and Robert Cummings. He was in grade school when a counselor told him that he will never fulfill his dream of becoming a lawyer because he was too slow and spoke very poorly. Elijah Cummings' closing remarks at Cohen hearing, Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) concluded the House Oversight Committee's questioning of President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen by delivering a call to "keep democracy in tact" and a return to normalcy in the political arena. Cummings, born the son of sharecroppers, was the chairman of the House Oversight Committee and was a civil rights attorney before entering politics. I am deeply saddened by his passing, and my prayers today are with his family and loved ones — and the people of Baltimore,” Maryland Senator Ben Cardin said in a statement. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) concluded the House Oversight Committee's questioning of President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen by delivering a call to "keep democracy in tact" and a return to normalcy in the political arena. “It is with great sadness and a heavy collective heart that we announce the passing of Chairman Elijah Eugene Cummings. Elijah was the third son of seven of Ruth Elma (née Cochran) and Robert Cummings. said in a statement announcing Cummings’ death. I loved him deeply and will miss him dearly.”, The Maryland Democratic Party added, “Our hearts are broken over the loss of such a dynamic figure in American politics. Elijah Cummings, the longtime Democratic representative from Maryland’s 7th Congressional District, died at the age of 68 on October 17, 2019, at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Quite possibly no elected official mattered so much to his constituents. He died of complications from a long battle with health problems, his wife said. He entered politics in 1980 as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates. As a lawmaker, he focused on cutting prescription drug prices, fighting addiction, strengthening gun control and reforming the criminal justice system. View the profiles of people named Joyce Cummings. Elijah Cummings' closing remarks at Cohen hearingRep. Cummings served for more than 23 years in the House of Representatives, winning his first election in 1996 and going on to be re-elected 12 times. “On my mother’s dying bed, 92 years old, former sharecropper, her last words were, ‘Do not let them take our votes away from us,’” Cummings said at a February 2019 hearing. And we ask the public and the press to allow Maryland Democratic Party Chair Dr. Maya Rockeymoore Cummings — and the rest of the Cummings family — time and space to grieve their loss.”. In that capacity, he presided over the public testimony of Michael Cohen, former lawyer of President Trump, and also led the impeachment inquiry against the latter. Cummings gave a powerful speech at the end of Michael Cohen’s February 2019 testimony about Trump before the Oversight Committee. His commitment to his city and country was unwavering, as will be my lasting respect for him.”. Sadly, the couple parted their ways soon. See the events in life of Elijah Cummings in Chronological Order, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Elijah_Cummings23.jpg, https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/elijah-cummings-50156.php, Celebrities Who Look Beautiful Even Without Makeup, The Top 25 Wrestling Announcers Of All Time, Famous Role Models You Would Like To Meet. From 1995 to 1996, Cummings was the Speaker Pro Tem of the Maryland House, becoming the first African-American in the state’s history to hold that position. Elijah Cummings Bio, Age. In February 1996, he contested in the special election held in Maryland's 7th congressional district after five-term Congressman Kweisi Mfume resigned to become president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He was first married to his then-wife Joyce Cummings in a private ceremony. protection self-incrimination, after he vaguely answered several questions. He was often a target of Trump’s attacks as a result. Moreover, the couple also shared a daughter Jennifer J. Cummings. Cummings married his second wife, Maya Rockeymoore, in 2008. In December 2010,after Edolphus Towns stepped down as the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee despite his seniority, Cummings defeated Carolyn Maloney in the House Democratic Caucus with support from Nancy Pelosi. 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