Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, II is currently serving his second term representing the Fifth District of Missouri in the House of Representatives and sits on the exclusive Financial Services Committee and the Speaker’s Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

 

He was born in Waxahachie, Texas, grew up in public housing and graduated high school in Wichita Falls, Texas. Congressman Cleaver went on to attend Prairie View A & M University, earning a B.S. in Sociology.

 

Congressman Cleaver arrived in Kansas City as an activist in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference charged with founding a Kansas City chapter of the civil rights organization. In 1974, after the Kansas City Chapter of the SCLC received its charter, he began his pastoral career at St. James United Methodist Church with a membership of 47. Today, St. James has a membership of 2,800.

 

In 1979 Cleaver was elected to City Council of Kansas City. After three terms, he ran for and was elected to the office of Mayor, where he made history as the first African American to hold the City’s highest office.

 

As Mayor, Cleaver worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life for the City’s residents. He championed programs and initiatives designed to create jobs and stimulate economic development, including infrastructure improvements, city planning and youth outreach. Cleaver’s exemplary leadership earned him a two-term position as President of the National Conference of Black Mayors.

 

Congressman Cleaver and his wife, Dianne, have been married for more than thirty years, where they have made Kansas City their home. They have four grown children and three grandchildren.