Harris Fawell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's13th district | |
| In office January 3, 1985 – January 3, 1999 | |
| Preceded by | John N. Erlenborn |
| Succeeded by | Judy Biggert |
| Member of theIllinois Senate | |
| In office January 1963 – January 1977 | |
| Preceded by | Lottie Holman O'Neill |
| Succeeded by | Jack E. Bowers |
| Constituency | 41st district (1963-67, 1973-77) 40th district (1967-73) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1929-03-25)March 25, 1929 West Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | November 11, 2021(2021-11-11) (aged 92) Naperville, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Ruth Fawell |
| Education | North Central College Illinois Institute of Technology (LL.B.) |
Harris Walter Fawell (March 25, 1929 – November 11, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician from Illinois who served seven terms as aRepublican member of theUnited States House of Representatives from 1985 to 1999.
Fawell was a graduate ofWest Chicago High School. He attendedNorth Central College of Naperville from 1947 to 1949, during which time he also played baseball for the minor league affiliate of theDetroit Tigers inGreenville, South Carolina.[1]
He received his LL.B fromChicago-Kent College of Law. Admitted to the bar in 1952, Fawell practiced law from 1954 to 1984. He served as an Assistant State Attorney forDuPage County, Illinois.[2][3]
He was the brother-in-law ofBeverly Fawell, who was a member of both Houses of theIllinois General Assembly.[4]
In 1958, Fawell challenged incumbentLottie Holman O'Neill in the Republican primary to represent the 41st district in theIllinois Senate, but was unsuccessful.[5] Four years later, he was elected to succeed her when she retired. He was aRepublican member of theIllinois Senate from 1963 to 1977, and was a delegate to theRepublican National Conventions in 1968 and 1988.
He prioritized preservation and expansion of local parks, resulting in some success but also provoking opposition from developers and other special interests. He was one of only two Republicans in the state senate at the time who voted in support of fair housing legislation.[6]
Fawell did not run for re-election to the state senate in 1976, choosing instead to make a run for a judicial seat. In the 1976 Republican primary for theIllinois Supreme Court, Appellate JudgeThomas J. Moran defeated Fawell.[7]
Afterwards, he returned to his private law practice, where he represented clients including municipalities and part districts.[8]
In 1984 he was elected to theU.S. House of Representatives, representing Illinois' 13th district where he served until he retired in 1999.
In Congress, he became well known for identifying and trying to eliminate what he believed was unnecessary government spending, particularly directed spending projects that he classified as "pork barrel" spending. In all, he is credited with successfully sponsoring 23 bill eliminating such congressional pet projects, which he claimed saved $2 billion in wasteful government spending.[9] He chose not to seek re-election to an eighth term, retiring from Congress in 1999.
The Harris W. Fawell Congressional Papers are held atNorth Central College.
He served on the North Central College Board of Trustees and on the Executive Council of the Chicago Metropolis 2020 of Chicago.[10][11] In2008, Fawell endorsed his home state's juniorUnited States SenatorBarack Obama for President of the United States, against his party's nominee,Arizona senatorJohn McCain.[12]
Fawell died of complications from Alzheimer's disease on November 11, 2021.[13]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | U.S. Representative of Illinois' 13th Congressional District 1985–1999 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
