Popular San Diego District 4 City Councilmember Charles Lewis died Sunday, Sept. 8, apparently of natural causes associated with internal bleeding, at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Allied Gardens.

Lewis, 37, was elected to the city council in 2002 after running an extensive grassroots campaign in the city’s most racially diverse district. He succeeded Councilmember George Stevens in the 2002 election after Stevens was termed out. Lewis had been Stevens’ chief of staff.

Stevens, a minister who refused to sign proclamations for San Diego LGBT Pride and often used anti-gay rhetoric during his tenure on the council, was Lewis’ political mentor, though Lewis was generally more supportive of the GLBT community, siding with the majority of the council to terminate the city’s lease with the Boy Scouts in Balboa Park and signing proclamations in support of Pride celebrations.

Stevens will reportedly take over District 4 until a special election to fill Lewis’ seat can be arranged. City Attorney Casey Gwinn has announced that Stevens is eligible to run for his old council seat since Lewis held the District 4 seat for two years.

Lewis was a co-defendant along with Councilmembers Michael Zucchet and Ralph Inzunza in a federal corruption case in which the three are accused of taking money from strip club owners.

Many of Lewis’ fellow council members and employees said the council member was well liked and well respected. Many also had hopes that Lewis would become the first African American to represent San Diego in state and national politics.

“It’s a sad day for the city, and frankly, for our LGBT community because Charles had turned out to be quite a good friend to us,” Deputy Mayor Toni Atkins said. “I’d worked with Charles for almost 11 years, and on a very personal level, I’ll miss him immensely. He had a wonderful sense of humor and was genuinely a good person. This is a profound and devastating loss.”