The cause of death was not immediately disclosed.
The former National Urban League president rose to prominence as a civil rights activist with close ties in every corner of American politics, although he was closer to Democrats, including presidents from Lyndon Johnson to Barack Obama. He also worked with Republican Presidents Ronald Reagan, George HW Bush and George W. Bush.
Jordan, born on August 15, 1935, graduated from DePauw University in Indiana in 1957, studied law at Howard University and began his career fighting segregation, starting with a lawsuit against the University of Georgia’s integration policy in 1961 He worked as a field director for NAACP and as director of the Southern Regional Council for the Electoral Education Project before becoming president of the National Urban League.
“Today, the world has lost an influential figure in the fight for civil rights and American politics, Vernon Jordan. An icon for the world and a longtime friend of the NAACP, his contribution to bringing our society towards justice is unmatched,” NAACP President Johnson Derrick said in a statement Tuesday. “In 2001, Jordan received the NAACP Spingarn Medal for a lifetime of activism for social justice. His exemplary life will shine as a guiding light for all who seek truth and justice for all people.”
Jordan’s closest political friendship was with Bill and Hillary Clinton, advising the then-Arkansas governor during his 1992 presidential campaign and serving as his friend’s external adviser. He remained close to the Clintons for the following decades, endorsing Hillary Clinton’s two presidential campaigns.
This story is emerging and will be updated.