Maylon Rice provides an extensive obituary on former Democratic state Rep. Charles Stewart of Fayetteville, whose record 44-year tenure in the House was ended by term limits in 1999. He was 93.
We could use more Charles Stewarts these days. Coincidentally, Republican Sen. Jim Hendren made that point just a few days ago with this Tweet featuring Stewart.
My first term – Democrat Rep Charlie Stewart who had served 45 years in the House co-sponsored a bill with a 35 year old Republican .. I miss those days. Some try to tell me not to work with Ds ..that’s a hard no. pic.twitter.com/Hv2o9J2pdU
— Jim Hendren (@JimHendren1) January 29, 2021
Thanks to power-hungry legislators, legislators again may serve 44 years or more in the legislature, though they’d have to sit out a two-year term occasionally.