planning committee before Gingrich was even sworn in, catapulting him ahead of sitting committee members. Repeal of the Twenty-Second Constitutional Amendment In the late 1980s, Vander Jagt helped lead an effort to repeal the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, which limits a President to serve two terms. "Ronald Reagan is one of the greatest American Presidents of all time, and I want to keep him on the job," he explained in 1986, in a fundraising letter to raise funds for such a campaign. In 1986, and again in 1987, 1989, and 1991, he sponsored such an amendment in the House. Post-government career In 1992, Vander Jagt's district was renumbered as the 2nd district. For the first time since his initial run in 1966, he faced a serious primary opponent in Herman Miller executive and fellow Dutch-American Pete Hoekstra. While Hoekstra had never run for office before, he made a name for himself by riding his bicycle across the district. Hoekstra also claimed that Vander Jagt had been in Congress for too long; Vander Jagt had won his first election when Hoekstra was 13 years old. Hoekstra scored a major upset, winning by over six points. He dominated his base in the district's more populated southern portion, including Muskegon and the Grand Rapids suburbs. Vander Jagt's margins in the northern portion weren't enough to close the gap. Vander Jagt returned to private law practice with the Cleveland-based law firm BakerHostetler. References Hope College Joint Archives, holder of most of his papers, others are held by Grand Valley State University Grand Valley State Special Collections & University Archives, Guy Vander Jagt Papers, RHC-11 Frontline interview "The Long March of Newt Gingrich" Notes External links |- |- 1931 births 2007 deaths People from Cadillac, Michigan American people of Dutch descent American Presbyterians Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Republican Party Michigan state senators 20th-century American politicians Hope College alumni Politicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan Yale University alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Deaths from pancreatic cancer People associated with BakerHostetler