serviceyears branch death_date birth_date term term_end alma_mater death_place profession preceded battles term_start rank resting_place succeeded birth_place party office state district religion article_title birth_name
1947 -- 1988 united states navy reserve 16 august 2001 9 april 1928 january , 1970 14 , 1969 & ndash ; december 15 august 8 , 1963 16 , 2001 january 14 , 1969 january university of south carolina washington , d.c. attorney albert william watson korean war vietnam war january 8 , 1957 3 , 1971 january 10 , 1967 january captain saint peter 's lutheran cemetery joe wilson columbia , south carolina democratic republican -lrb- 1962 & ndash ; 2001 -rrb- -lrb- c. 1946 & ndash ; 1962 -rrb- member district member of the south carolina senate from the 22nd of district member of the south carolina house of representatives from the lexington county south carolina senate from the 7th south carolina 2nd lutheran floyd spence
 floyd davidson spence
floyd spence

floyd davidson spence -lrb- april 9 , 1928 -- august 16 , 2001 -rrb- was an attorney and a politician from the u.s. state of south carolina .
elected for three terms to the south carolina house of representatives from lexington county as a democrat , in 1962 spence announced his decision to switch to the republican party , as he was unhappy with shifts in the national party .
he lost a contested seat that year for united states representative from south carolina 's 2nd congressional district to democrat albert w. watson , who had the support of powerful senator strom thurmond .
watson shifted to the republican party in 1965 and was elected as governor in 1970 .
that year spence won the congressional seat , and was re-elected for fourteen terms after this .
he became ranking republican on the house armed services committee in 1993 and chairman in 1995 .
spence died in office from cerebral thrombosis in washington , d.c. in 2001 .
