"Clarence M. Mitchell III devoted his life to championing the underserved," Mr. Cummings said in a statement. "As the son of Clarence M. Mitchell Jr. and Juanita Jackson Mitchell, providing a voice to the voiceless was in his DNA."
Mr. Mitchell told The Sun in August 2008 that then-Sen. Barack Obama was "the beneficiary of those who laid the foundation for him to be where he is."
The former legislator described an encounter with Mr. Obama at a rally in Baltimore before he won the Democratic Party's presidential nomination.
Mr. Obama "turned to me, took both my hands and looked me right in the eye and said, 'Senator Mitchell, I want you to know I stand on your shoulders.' What he was saying to me was that he recognized that there were those that paved the way for him."
In addition to his son, survivors include his wife, the former Joyce Ellis; another son, Tariq Clarence Mitchell; five daughters, Lisa Mitchell Sennaar, Lauren Mitchell Williams, Shannon Mitchell, Sharon Mitchell and Angelique Spencer; and three brothers, Dr. Keiffer J. Mitchell Sr., Michael Bowen Mitchell Sr. and George Davis Mitchell, all of Baltimore. An earlier marriage to Clarice Byas Wheatley ended in divorce.
Service arrangements have not been finalized.
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Baltimore Sun librarian Paul McCardell and reporters Jean Marbella, Erica L. Green, Scott Dance and Michael Dresser contributed to this article.
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