Henry Dworshak


Henry Clarence Dworshak Jr. was a United States senator and congressman from Idaho. Originally from Minnesota, he was a Republican from Burley, and served over 22 years in the House and Senate.

Early years

Born in Duluth, Minnesota, Dworshak attended its local public schools and learned the printer's trade. During the First World War, he served as a Sergeant in the U.S. Army Fourth Antiaircraft Machine Gun Battalion in the American Expeditionary Forces. After the war, Dworshak managed a printing supply business in Duluth.
He moved west in 1924 to Burley, Idaho, to become the publisher and editor of the South [Idaho Press|Burley Bulletin], a semi-weekly newspaper in Cassia County. Dworshak became a public figure when he was elected president of the Idaho Editorial Association in 1931, and he was a prominent member of the American Legion and Rotary International. He was also a member of the Elks and a freemason.

Congress

House

Dworshak ran for Congress in United States [House of Representatives elections, 1936#Idaho|1936] in Idaho's 2nd district, but lost to incumbent D. Worth Clark. Two years later, in 1938, Clark ran for U.S. senator and won, and Dworshak won the open House seat. He was re-elected in 1940, 1942, and 1944.
YearDemocratVotesPctRepublicanVotesPct
1936D. Worth Clark 67,23860.5%Henry Dworshak43,83439.5%
1938Bert H. Miller47,19946.4%Henry Dworshak54,52753.6%
1940Ira Masters61,72646.9%Henry Dworshak 69,80453.1%
1942Ira Masters37,81545.2%Henry Dworshak 45,80554.8%
1944Phil J. Evans56,24947.7%Henry Dworshak 61,75152.3%

Senate

Republican senator John Thomas died in office in November 1945, and Democratic governor Charles C. Gossett resigned to accept an appointment to fill the seat. Gossett failed to secure the nomination for the special election; Dworshak defeated state senator George Donart in the November 1946 election to complete the term. Two years later, Dworshak was defeated for a full term in the 1948 general election by state supreme court justice and former state attorney general Bert H. Miller, he had defeated Miller ten years earlier.
Miller died of a heart attack in October 1949 after only nine months in office, and Dworshak was appointed his successor by Republican governor C. A. Robins. Dworshak won a special election in 1950, and was elected to full Senate terms in 1954 and 1960. A staunch isolationist like William Borah, Dworshak stood unwavering against overseas intervention, especially in U.S. affairs. Dworshak voted in favor of the Civil [Rights Act of 1957] and the Twenty-fourth Amendment to [the United States Constitution|24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution], but did not vote on the Civil Rights Act of 1960.
YearDemocratVotesPctRepublicanVotesPct
1946 George Donart74,62941.4%Henry Dworshak105,52358.6%
1948Bert H. Miller107,00050.0%Henry Dworshak 103,86848.5%
1950 Claude J. Burtenshaw97,09248.1%Henry Dworshak 104,60851.9%
1954Glen H. Taylor84,13937.2%Henry Dworshak 142,26962.8%
1960R.L. "Bob" McLaughlin139,44847.7%Henry Dworshak 152,64852.3%

Source: ^Dworshak was appointed to the vacant seat in November 1946 and October 1949

Death

Dworshak died in office of a heart attack on July 23, 1962, at his home in Washington, D.C., and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. His obituary described him as "...a staunchly conservative voice on Capitol Hill..." He was succeeded by former governor Len B. Jordan, who served until January 1973.

Legacy