Fletcher Thompson | |
|---|---|
.jpeg) | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromGeorgia's5th district | |
| In office January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Charles Weltner |
| Succeeded by | Andrew Young |
| Member of theGeorgia Senate from the34th district | |
| In office January 11, 1965 – January 9, 1967 | |
| Preceded by | Charlie Brown |
| Succeeded by | W. Armstrong Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Standish Fletcher Thompson (1925-02-05)February 5, 1925 College Park, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | September 13, 2022(2022-09-13) (aged 97) Marietta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Emory University (AB) Woodrow Wilson College of Law (LLB)[1] |
| Occupation | Lawyer, politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 1943–1953 |
| Unit | U.S. Army Air Corps |
| Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
Standish Fletcher Thompson (February 5, 1925 – September 13, 2022) was an American lawyer,World War II veteran andRepublican politician who served as a member of theUnited States House of Representatives from 1967 to 1973 from the5th Congressional District ofGeorgia.
Thompson was born nearAtlanta inCollege Park inFulton County, Georgia. He graduated from Russell High School inEast Point, Georgia. While at Russell High School, Thompson was the president of the Model Airplane Club.
Thompson completedBasic Training with the90th Infantry Division before he was transferred to the Aviation Cadet Training Program inWichita Falls, Texas. Thompson qualified as both a pilot and as anavigator. A growing need forArmy Air Corps navigators resulted in his assignment as a navigator within the 6th Emergency Air-sea Rescue Squadron. Over the next several years, Thompson would earn sevenservice stars along with anAsiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal.[2] On demobilization, he attended theMethodist-affiliatedEmory University in Atlanta, from which he graduated in 1949. During theKorean War, Thompson re-enlisted in theUnited States Air Force as a pilot.
On returning fromSouth Korea, Thompson graduated in 1957 from the now-closed Woodrow Wilson College of Law in Atlanta. The following year he was admitted to the Georgia bar and established a law firm in East Point. He was also president of an aviation insurance firm.
In theNovember 3, 1964general election, in whichBarry M. Goldwater ofArizona became the first Republican presidential nominee to win Georgia'selectoral votes, Thompson defeated then senior DemocraticState Senator Charlie Brown in District 34.[3] Thompson was one of only four Republican members of the upper chamber of the legislature at the time. He was selected by the Democratic majority to represent Fulton County in the drafting and sponsorship of the Metropolitan Rapid Transit Authority Act.
Two years later, Thompson ran for Congress, becoming the first Republican since theReconstruction era to represent Atlanta and the 5th Congressional District in the United States House.[4] The Democratic Executive Committee chose Archie Lindsey, then the chairman of the Fulton County Commission. Lindsey had three weeks to mount a campaign. Thompson prevailed, 55,423 (60.1 percent) to Lindsey's 36,751 (39.9 percent).[5] Thompson netted some 30% of the Black vote. Thompson voted for the initial House Resolution of theCivil Rights Act of 1968 but voted against the final Senate amendments to the Act.[6][7] Thompson was re-elected in1968 and1970, when he defeatedAndrew Young, who after the next election in1972 in a revised district succeeded Thompson in the Fifth District. In 1968, Thompson was the only Southern congressman to attendMartin Luther King's funeral, and he faced backlash from his constituents as a result.[8]
In1972, Thompson ran for theU.S. Senate.Sam Nunn defeatedDavid H. Gambrell in the Democratic primary; Gambrell had been appointed by then GovernorJimmy Carter to succeed the lateRichard B. Russell Jr. Thompson lost to Nunn, 362,501 votes (46.5 percent) to 404,890 (52 percent).[9]
After leaving the U.S. House, Thompson returned to his law firm in Atlanta. In 1985, he was made a member of theAtlanta Regional Commission. From 2009 until 2011, Thompson served as the Commander of the Atlanta World War II Roundtable, an organization that was created in 1986 "to hear and record the war experiences of World War II and to pass on to posterity the knowledge of World War II and the price – human and material – that was paid by our nation for the preservation of freedom in the United States and the world".[10]
Thompson died on September 13, 2022, aged 97.[11] His wife, Kathryn Cochran, whom he married in 1946, predeceased him by seven months.[12] They had two children: Charles and Deborah.[12]
Georgia's 5th congressional district:[13][14][15]
| Year | Republican | Votes | % | Democratic | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | √ Fletcher Thompson | 55,249 | 60.1% | Archie L. Lindsey | 36,751 | 39.9% | ||
| 1968 | √ Fletcher Thompson | 79,258 | 55.6% | Charles L. Weltner | 63,183 | 44.4% | ||
| 1970 | √ Fletcher Thompson | 78,540 | 57.4% | Andrew Young | 58,394 | 42.6% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sam Nunn | 404,890 | 51.98% | |
| Republican | Fletcher Thompson | 362,501 | 46.54% | |
| Independent | Alice Conner | 7,587 | 0.97% | |
| Independent | George E. Schmidt | 3,932 | 0.51% | |
| Total votes | 778,910 | 100.00% | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sam Nunn | 636,060 | 53.96% | |
| Republican | Fletcher Thompson | 542,291 | 46.01% | |
| Write-in | 391 | 0.03% | ||
| Total votes | 1,178,742 | 100.00% | ||
| Democratichold | ||||
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vacant Title last held by G. H. Williams | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromGeorgia (Class 2) 1972 | Succeeded by John Stokes |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromGeorgia's 5th congressional district January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1973 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
