Alan J. Dixon | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Dixon, circa 1989 | |
| United States Senator fromIllinois | |
| In office January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1993 | |
| Preceded by | Adlai Stevenson III |
| Succeeded by | Carol Moseley Braun |
| 34thSecretary of State of Illinois | |
| In office January 10, 1977 – January 12, 1981 | |
| Governor | Jim Thompson |
| Preceded by | Michael Howlett |
| Succeeded by | Jim Edgar |
| 65thTreasurer of Illinois | |
| In office January 11, 1971 – January 10, 1977 | |
| Governor | Richard B. Ogilvie Dan Walker |
| Preceded by | Charles W. Woodford |
| Succeeded by | Donald R. Smith |
| Member of theIllinois Senate | |
| In office 1963–1971 | |
| Member of theIllinois House of Representatives | |
| In office 1951–1963 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alan John Dixon (1927-07-07)July 7, 1927 Belleville, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | July 6, 2014(2014-07-06) (aged 86) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (BA) Washington University in St. Louis (JD) |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Navy |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Alan John Dixon (July 7, 1927 – July 6, 2014) was an American politician and member of theDemocratic Party who served in theIllinois General Assembly from 1951 to 1971, as theIllinois Treasurer from 1971 to 1977, as theIllinois Secretary of State from 1977 to 1981 and as a member of theUnited States Senate from 1981 to 1993.
Born inBelleville, Illinois, on July 7, 1927,[1] Dixon attended Illinois public schools and later earned his bachelor's degree from theUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and hisJ.D. fromWashington University School of Law[2] in 1949.[3] While attending the University of Illinois, he joined theDelta Upsilon fraternity. DuringWorld War II, Dixon served in theUnited States Navy.
Dixon served as a member of theIllinois House of Representatives from 1951 to 1963 and as a member of theIllinois Senate from 1963 to 1971, serving as Minority Whip for part of that time.
In the fall of 1970,Karl Rove, a futureWhite House Deputy Chief of Staff in theGeorge W. Bush administration, used afalse identity to enter the office of Dixon's campaign forIllinois Treasurer and stole 1.000 sheets of paper with campaign letterhead. Rove then printed fake campaign rally fliers promising "free beer, free food, girls and a good time for nothing", and distributed them at rock concerts and homeless shelters, with the effect of disrupting Dixon's rally. Dixon eventually won the election. Rove's role would not become publicly known until August 1973. Rove told theDallas Morning News in 1999, "It was a youthful prank at the age of 19 and I regret it."[4]
In 1976, Dixon was electedIllinois Secretary of State. The 1976 Illinois State election was turbulent for the Democratic Party. Outgoing GovernorDan Walker had lost the support of the party and was defeated in the primary election. Dixon's election as Secretary of State left two years on his term as State Treasurer. To prevent Walker from appointing himself or anyone else to the position, Dixon proposed to incoming Republican GovernorJames R. Thompson that he would resign after Thompson was inaugurated if Thompson agreed to Dixon's choice for State Treasurer. Dixon's choice wasDonald R. Smith, a Republican who was the ranking Civil Service employee in the State Treasurer's office and who had agreed not to run for re-election. Dixon served as Secretary of State until 1981, when he took office as aUnited States senator from Illinois.[5]
Dixon was generally considered a moderate and was less visible nationally than either of his Illinois colleagues,Charles Percy andPaul Simon, both of whom sought the presidency. In 1992, Dixon lost in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate toCarol Moseley Braun. This defeat shocked observers; at the time no senator had been defeated in a primary in over a decade and Dixon had a long record of electoral success.His vote to confirmClarence Thomas to theSupreme Court contributed to his defeat.[6] Dixon was sharply criticized during the campaign by Braun for supporting Clarence Thomas' nomination despite allegations of Thomas sexually harassing Anita Hill.[7]
Braun, a black woman, had the complete support of black voters, and as a known reformist liberal got a large share of liberal voters, and also attracted many women voters in what was termed "The Year of the Woman". Another factor was the third candidate in the race, multi-millionaire attorney Al Hofeld. Hofeld drew away some of the moderate and conservative Democrats who normally supported Dixon. He also spent a large amount of money running advertisements attacking Dixon, weakening his support. TheChicago Tribune ran a piece in whichEric Zorn claimed that Dixon's voting to confirm Clarence Thomas in 1991 set off a chain of events that led toBarack Obama's election as president in 2008.[8]
Dixon chaired the DefenseBase Realignment and Closure Commission in 1994 and 1995. After his term in the Senate, Dixon resumed practicing law with theBryan Cavelaw firm inSt. Louis and lived inFairview Heights, Illinois, where he died on July 6, 2014, fromnatural causes just 1 day shy of his 87th birthday.[9] His autobiography,The Gentleman from Illinois: Stories from Forty Years of Elective Public Service, was published in 2013 bySouthern Illinois University Press.
Alan J. Dixon was inducted as a Laureate ofThe Lincoln Academy of Illinois and awarded the Order of Lincoln (the State's highest honor) by theGovernor of Illinois in 1994 in the area of government.[10]
Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for Justice, said [...] 'History shows us that voters turned on Alan Dixon for his vote on Clarence Thomas and voters gave Arlen Specter the toughest reelection of his life.'
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Treasurer of Illinois 1971–1977 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Secretary of State of Illinois 1977–1981 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 3) from Illinois 1981–1993 Served alongside:Charles H. Percy,Paul Simon | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forTreasurer of Illinois 1970,1974 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee forSecretary of State of Illinois 1976,1978 | |
| Preceded by Adlai Stevenson III | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromIllinois (Class 3) 1980,1986 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Senate Democratic Chief Deputy Whip 1989–1993 | Succeeded by |
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| Class 3 | ||
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