 He served for twelve full terms, from November 5, 1940 until his death from cancer in Washington, D.C. on November 7, 1965.During the 79th Congress, he chaired the Committee on Election of President, Vice President, and Representatives in Congress, and in the 84th through 89th Congresses, he chaired the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries.He was a signatory to the 1956 Southern Manifesto that opposed the desegregation of public schools ordered by the Supreme Court in "Brown v. Board of Education".