The Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson, the towering civil rights leader whose moral vision and fiery oratory reshaped the Democratic Party and America, has died, a Rainbow Push Coalition spokesperson confirmed to CNN.

The late Jesse Jackson twice sought the Democratic nomination for president – and though he fell short in 1984 and 1988, his insurgent campaigns reshaped American politics and laid the groundwork for Barack Obama's ascent two decades later,

Jackson's electoral successes during his presidential runs helped pave the way for Barack Obama's 2008 nomination as well as Kamala Harris’ in 2024. But Jackson also paved the way for generations of Democrats in Chicago and beyond,