Politics / Law
Sander Levin
born 1931 · politician, lawyer
Detroit-born Democrat who represented northwestern Detroit and its northern suburbs in Congress for 36 years (1983–2019) and chaired the Ways and Means Committee.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 95- Birth name
- Sander Martin Levin
- Also known as
- Sandy Levin
- Detroit years
- 1931–
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Sander Levin was born in Detroit in 1931, the older brother of future senator Carl Levin, and like him graduated from Central High School. After the University of Chicago, Columbia and Harvard Law School he returned to practice law in Detroit. He served in the Michigan Senate, became chairman of the state Democratic Party in 1968 and twice ran for governor, losing narrowly to William Milliken in 1970 and 1974. Elected to Congress in 1982, he first represented a district that took in northwestern Detroit together with parts of Macomb and Oakland counties; after 1992 his seat shifted to suburbs such as Royal Oak, Southfield, Warren and Oak Park. A trade and tax specialist, he chaired the House Ways and Means Committee in 2010–2011 and pressed for help for Detroit's automakers during the 2008–09 crisis. His son Andy Levin succeeded him in 2019.
Highlights
- U.S. representative from Michigan, 1983–2019
- Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, 2010–2011
- Chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party from 1968
- Democratic nominee for governor of Michigan in 1970 and 1974
- Graduate of Detroit's Central High School
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · 1940s
Central High School
Detroit's oldest public high school, which both Levin brothers attended.