Changes

|preceded=William Luther Hill

|preceded=William Luther Hill

|succeeded=[[George Smathers]]

|succeeded=[[George Smathers]]

|office2=[[U.S. Representative]] for District 3<br> (since renumbered several times) ([[Miami]] and Miami Beach)

|office2=[[U.S. Representative]] for the 3rd Congressional District<br>(since renumbered several times) ([[Miami]] and Miami Beach)

|term_start2=January 3, 1963

|term_start2=January 3, 1963

|term_end2=May 30, 1989

|term_end2=May 30, 1989

'''Claude Denson Pepper''' (September 8, 1900 &ndash; May 30, 1989) was a prominent leader of [[liberal]]s in the U.S. state of [[Florida]] from the 1930s to the 1980s. A [[Democratic Party|Democrat]], he served in the [[United States Senate]] from 1936 to 1951 and the [[United States House of Representatives]] for a district in [[Miami]] and Miami Beach. He was also known for support of issues important to the elderly.<ref name=obit>{{cite web|url= http://movies2.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0908.html|author=Reginald Thomas|date=May 31, 1989|title=Claude Pepper, Fiery Fighter for Elderly Rights, Dies at 88|publisher=''[[The New York Times]]''|accesdate=February 25, 2021}}</ref>

'''Claude Denson Pepper''' (September 8, 1900 &ndash; May 30, 1989) was a prominent leader of [[liberal]]s in the U.S. state of [[Florida]] from the 1930s to the 1980s. A [[Democratic Party|Democrat]], he served in the [[United States Senate]] from 1936 to 1951 and the [[United States House of Representatives]] for a district in [[Miami]] and Miami Beach. He was also known for support of issues important to the elderly.<ref name=obit>{{cite web|url= http://movies2.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0908.html|author=Reginald Thomas|date=May 31, 1989|title=Claude Pepper, Fiery Fighter for Elderly Rights, Dies at 88|publisher=''[[The New York Times]]''|accesdate=February 25, 2021}}</ref>

Pepper was born on a farm near Dudleyville in Chambers County, [[Alabama]], and graduate in 1917 from Camp Hill High School. For a time, he operated a hat cleaning and repair business, taught school in Dothan in southeastern Alabama, and worked in a steel mill before he began his studies at the [[University of Alabama]]. He served in the [[United States Army]] in [[World War I]], and in 1921 received a bachelor's degree from the [[University of Alabama]] at [[Tuscaloosa, Alabama|Tuscaloosa]]. He taught law at the [[University of Arkansas]] at Fayetteville, where one of his students was later senatorial colleague [[J. William Fulbright]], subsequently the UA president. In 1924, he graduated from [[Harvard Law School]] in Cambridge, [[Massachusetts]], and later opened his legal practice in Perry in Taylor County in northern Florida.<ref>Ric A. Kabat, "From Camp Hill to Harvard Yard : The early years of Claude D. Pepper,"  ''The Florida Historical Quarterly,'' October 1, 1993, pp. 153=179.</ref>

Pepper was born on a farm near Dudleyville in Chambers County, [[Alabama]], and graduate in 1917 from Camp Hill High School. For a time, he operated a hat cleaning and repair business, taught school in Dothan in southeastern Alabama, and worked in a steel mill before he began his studies at the [[University of Alabama]]. He served in the [[United States Army]] in [[World War I]], and in 1921 received a bachelor's degree from the [[University of Alabama]] at [[Tuscaloosa, Alabama|Tuscaloosa]]. He taught law at the [[University of Arkansas]] at Fayetteville, where one of his students was later senatorial colleague [[J. William Fulbright]], subsequently the UA president. In 1924, he graduated from [[Harvard Law School]] in Cambridge, [[Massachusetts]], and later opened his legal practice in Perry in Taylor County in northern Florida.<ref>Ric A. Kabat, "From Camp Hill to Harvard Yard : The early years of Claude D. Pepper,"  ''The Florida Historical Quarterly,'' October 1, 1993, pp. 153=179.</ref>

After one term as a state representative, Pepper won the 1936 [[special election]] to succeed Senator Duncan U. Fletcher. Pepper was a strong advocate for the [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] administration and backed the passage of the [[Fair Labor Standards Act]] of 1938, the last of the major [[New Deal]] legislation. He also opposed anti-lynching legislation to appease Southern racists, vowing for maintaining [[white supremacy]] following the [[Supreme Court]] ruling in ''Smith v. Allwright'' that banned [[white primary]] elections.<ref>Mormino, Gar R. (October 30, 2020). [https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2020/10/30/the-strange-career-of-claude-pepper-column/ The strange career of Claude Pepper | Column]. ''Tampa Bay Times''. Retrieved February 25, 2021.</ref>   

After one term as a state representative, Pepper won the 1936 [[special election]] to succeed Senator Duncan U. Fletcher. Pepper was a strong advocate for the [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] administration and backed the passage of the [[Fair Labor Standards Act]] of 1938, the last of the major [[New Deal]] legislation. He also opposed anti-lynching legislation to appease Southern racists, vowing for maintaining [[white supremacy]] following the [[Supreme Court]] ruling in ''Smith v. Allwright'' that banned [[white primary]] elections.<ref>Mormino, Gar R. (October 30, 2020). [https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2020/10/30/the-strange-career-of-claude-pepper-column/ The strange career of Claude Pepper | Column]. ''Tampa Bay Times''. Retrieved February 25, 2021.</ref>