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.

Both men sought the presidency. They came from different backgrounds, held different goals, and had radically different styles.

Jesse Jackson, a Greenville native, was a tireless activist, skilled diplomat and influential politician who made two transformative presidential runs in the 1980s.

CHICAGO — Details for a celebration of life for the late Rev. Jesse Jackson were announced Wednesday, with multiple events scheduled in Chicago. Jackson, the civil rights activist who worked with Martin Luther King and spent more than six decades advocating for racial equality, economic justice and voting rights, died Tuesday. He was 84.

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,

​Four decades after his presidential runs, the prevailing question is “Why didn’t Jesse Jackson win?” While he didn’t capture the Democratic nomination, according to the Rev. Dr. William Barber, President and Senior Lecturer of Repairers of the Breach, one must utilize another calculus when it comes to judging what winning really is.

The late Rev. Jesse Jackson might best be remembered as a longtime civil rights leader, but he also played a pivotal role in presidential politics.

NPR's Scott Detrow talks with CNN's Abby Phillip about the life and legacy of civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson, who died at 84.

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,

Known for being a voice for the voiceless, the Rev. Jesse Jackson​ died at age 84, his family said in a statement on Tuesday.