John Doogan, a Savin Hill resident and a fixture in local Democratic politics since the 1960s, died on Friday. Doogan served as the parliamentarian for the Massachusetts Democratic Party and was a longtime member of the party’s state committee.

Doogan, 64, died at Carney Hospital after battling a terminal illness in recent months at St. Joseph’s Manor. Doogan, who briefly wrote a column titled ‘A Wink and a Nod’ for the Dorchester Reporter, was a fierce advocate for Democratic solidarity and took particular pleasure at poking politicians he felt were not loyal to the party line.

“We’re going to miss him,” said John Walsh, the chairman of the party. “I remember he would be at every state committee meeting and he was an aggressive part of debate. I would sometimes not agree with him at all, but would come up at the end and compliment me on the precision of applying Robert’s Rules of Order. John had a solid sense of his own beliefs. He stood for so many of the economic and social justice that the party is built on.”

State Rep. Marty Walsh saluted Doogan’s commitment to the state party and the local Ward 13 ward committee that he served on.

“John was a die-hard Democrat. In a battle he’d be the last Democrat standing,” Rep. Walsh said.