Join the Durham Chamber, elected officials and industry leaders at the 2016 Legislative Forum and Holiday Reception on Dec. 12 at 3 p.m. at the Washington Duke Inn and Golf Club. Our forum speaker is the Honorable G.K. Butterfield, First Congressional District of North Carolina; Chief Deputy Whip, Democratic Caucus and Chair, Congressional Black Caucus.

Congressman G. K. Butterfield, Jr. is a life-long resident of eastern North Carolina. Raised in Wilson, Congressman Butterfield spent his formative years attending Charles H. Darden High School and worked tirelessly in the Civil Rights Movement as a young adult. His parents were Dr. & Mrs. G. K. Butterfield, Sr. His father practiced dentistry for 50 years and served as one of North Carolina's first black elected officials since Reconstruction. His mother was a classroom teacher for 48 years.
Congressman Butterfield graduated from college and law school at North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina. After earning his law degree, Congressman Butterfield founded a law practice in Wilson and served the community in that capacity for 13 years. He is best known for his successful litigation of voting rights cases that resulted in the election of African-American elected officials throughout eastern North Carolina.

In 1988, Congressman Butterfield was elected as Resident Superior Court judge. In this role, he presided over civil and criminal court in 46 counties of North Carolina. For two years, he served on the North Carolina Supreme Court by appointment of the governor. Butterfield retired from the judiciary after 15 years of service and successfully ran for Congress. He was elected to serve the First District of North Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives in a special election on July 20, 2004, where he continues to serve today.

In Congress, Butterfield is a champion of affordable health care, education, investments in rural communities, veterans, renewable energies, and federal programs that support low-income and middle-class Americans.
Butterfield serves in the Democratic leadership as Chief Deputy Whip and Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. He sits on the influential Committee on Energy & Commerce as the 5th most senior Democrat on the Health Subcommittee. In addition, he serves as a member of the subcommittees of Communications and Technology, and Commerce, Manufacturing, & Trade.

Congressman Butterfield is a life-long member of Jackson Chapel First Missionary Baptist Church. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army and a proud father and grandfather.

Seating is limited.  To register please contact Mable Rogers at mrogers@durhamchamber.org