Burton, as Democrat, won a special election in February 1964 to fill the U.S. House of Representatives vacancy caused by the resignation of United States Representative John F. Shelley, who was elected mayor of San Francisco. Burton was reelected to the 10 succeeding Congresses. In 1965, Burton was one of only 3 members of the House to vote against appropriations that President Lyndon B. Johnson requested for the Vietnam War. Burton was a delegate to the California State Democratic convention from 1968 to 1982. He was also a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1968 and 1972. At the 1968 convention, he was a part of the delegation pledged to Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated after winning the California Democratic Primary in June. In 1973, Burton allowed a bill to go to the floor without a "closed rule"—a stipulation that there could be no amendments proposed to it—for the first time since the 1920s. The ending of the closed rule created an infusion of federal lobbyists at the Capitol building; the lobbyists targeted members of Congress to add funding for lobbyists' favorite projects into bills. For this reason, David Frum wrote that Burton "created the modern Congress" more than anyone else. After the Democrats gained a strong majority in 1974, he was successful in getting the House to abolish the House Un-American Activities Committee. Burton was supported by labor unions and championed union activists, supporting the activities of the farm workers union and the coal miners union. When President Gerald Ford appeared before Congress in 1975 to request aid during a refugee crisis in the Vietnamese and Cambodian capitals, Burton became so upset with Ford's request that he called it "an outrage" and left halfway through the speech. In December 1976, Burton narrowly lost a bid for House Majority Leader to Jim Wright of Fort Worth, Texas, by a vote of 148 to 147. He was the author of the bill that created the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and legislation setting up wilderness areas across the country. The Point Reyes National Seashore includes the Phillip Burton Wilderness, named for the congressman in 1985. In the early 1980s, he worked with gay liaison Bill Kraus to create legislation and funding for AIDS research in the San Francisco area. He also was instrumental in establishing the position of non-voting representative from Guam, the Virgin Islands, and American Samoa.
Death, succession, and honors
Burton died on April 10, 1983, in San Francisco at age 56, of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. He was cremated, and the ashes were interred in the National Cemetery of the Presidio of San Francisco. His wife Sala Burton won a special election in June 1983 to serve the remainder of his term; she was reelected in November 1984 and November 1986. Burton's House seat is currently held by Nancy Pelosi, who won a special election in 1987, following Sala Burton's death. Nancy Pelosi later became first female Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. She held that position in 2007-2011 and is again currently serving since 2019. There is a statue of Burton at the Great Meadow at Fort Mason, in the Golden Gate Recreation Area. San Francisco's federal building is named for Burton. Phillip & Sala Burton High School, on the site of the former Woodrow Wilson High School in San Francisco is named for Phillip and his wife.
