Edward J. Gurney
Encyclopedia
Edward John Gurney was an American politician from Florida
, where he served as a Representative
and a United States Senator
. He was the first Republican
Senator elected from Florida since Reconstruction.
. He attended public schools and went on to graduate from Colby College
in 1935 and Harvard Law School
in 1938. He was admitted to the Bar of New York
the following year and began practicing law in New York City
.
After U.S.
entry into World War II
, Gurney enlisted as a private in the army and saw action in the European theater of conflict. In 1946 he was discharged as a lieutenant colonel. Gurney entered Duke Law School, and he received a degree in 1948. He then moved to Winter Park, Florida
.
In 1952 Gurney was elected city commissioner and served until his election as city attorney for Maitland
. He completed his career in local office with service as mayor
during 1961 to 1962.
Gurney was elected to the United States Congress
in 1962, 1964, and 1966. In 1968, he was elected to the United States Senate for the seat of retiring Democrat
George Smathers
. The election coincided with Richard Nixon
's victory in the presidential race that year. Gurney's victory can be attributed to the Republican campaign's Southern Strategy
. Gurney defeated his opponent, former Governor Leroy Collins
, with 55.9 percent of the vote to Collins' 44.1 percent. Many supporters of third-party presidential candidate George C. Wallace, Sr.
, voted for Gurney and hence provided him a coalition of growing Republicans in Florida allied with a declining number of conservative Democrats.
Gurney ran on a record that included votes against civil rights legislation, foreign aid, and that "expensive boondoggle," the war on poverty.
Future-President George W. Bush
worked as a traveling aide for Gurney while he was running for Senate in Florida
. Bush was placed on inactive duty status from the National Guard so he could volunteer.
In 1970, Congressman William C. "Bill" Cramer
ran as the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the retiring Democrat Spessard Holland
. Gurney and then Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr.
opposed Cramer's nomination and supported an intraparty rival, former U.S. Supreme Court nominee George Harrold Carswell
. Cramer easily defeated Carswell for the Senate nomination but was then defeated in the fall, when a divided GOP worked to the benefit of the Democratic senatorial nominee, then State Senator Lawton Chiles
of Lakeland
.
In 1973 Gurney was named to the Senate committee under Sam J. Ervin investigating the Watergate scandal. He was the Nixon administration's strongest supporter on the committee. Gurney was embroiled in an influence peddling
scandal in 1974, which caused him to not seek re-election in 1974. He was indicted and tried on seven counts of bribery and related offenses. During the first trial, he was found not guilty of five counts, and the jury could not reach a verdict on two counts. Later, he was retried on those two counts and was also found not guilty. He ran for Congress in 1978, but was heavily defeated by now U.S. Senator Bill Nelson
.
Gurney retired to resume the practice of law in Winter Park, where he died.
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, where he served as a Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
and a United States Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. He was the first Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Senator elected from Florida since Reconstruction.
Biography
Gurney was born in Portland, MainePortland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
. He attended public schools and went on to graduate from Colby College
Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States...
in 1935 and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 1938. He was admitted to the Bar of New York
Association of the Bar of the City of New York
The New York City Bar Association , founded in 1870, is a voluntary association of lawyers and law students. Since 1896, the organization, formally known as the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, has been headquartered in a landmark building on 44th Street, between Fifth and Sixth...
the following year and began practicing law in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
After U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
entry into World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Gurney enlisted as a private in the army and saw action in the European theater of conflict. In 1946 he was discharged as a lieutenant colonel. Gurney entered Duke Law School, and he received a degree in 1948. He then moved to Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 24,090 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 28,083. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area...
.
In 1952 Gurney was elected city commissioner and served until his election as city attorney for Maitland
Maitland, Florida
Maitland is a suburban city in Orange County, Florida, United States, part of the Greater Metro Orlando area. The population was 12,019 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 14,172...
. He completed his career in local office with service as mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
during 1961 to 1962.
Gurney was elected to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
in 1962, 1964, and 1966. In 1968, he was elected to the United States Senate for the seat of retiring Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
George Smathers
George Smathers
George Armistead Smathers was an American lawyer and politician who represented the state of Florida in the United States Senate for eighteen years, from 1951 until 1969, as a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life:...
. The election coincided with Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's victory in the presidential race that year. Gurney's victory can be attributed to the Republican campaign's Southern Strategy
Southern strategy
In American politics, the Southern strategy refers to the Republican Party strategy of winning elections in Southern states by exploiting anti-African American racism and fears of lawlessness among Southern white voters and appealing to fears of growing federal power in social and economic matters...
. Gurney defeated his opponent, former Governor Leroy Collins
LeRoy Collins
Thomas LeRoy Collins was the 33rd Governor of Florida.-Early life:Collins was born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida, where he attended Leon High School. He went on to attend the Eastman Business College in New York and then went on to the Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Alabama to...
, with 55.9 percent of the vote to Collins' 44.1 percent. Many supporters of third-party presidential candidate George C. Wallace, Sr.
George Wallace
George Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...
, voted for Gurney and hence provided him a coalition of growing Republicans in Florida allied with a declining number of conservative Democrats.
Gurney ran on a record that included votes against civil rights legislation, foreign aid, and that "expensive boondoggle," the war on poverty.
Future-President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
worked as a traveling aide for Gurney while he was running for Senate in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. Bush was placed on inactive duty status from the National Guard so he could volunteer.
In 1970, Congressman William C. "Bill" Cramer
William C. Cramer
William Cato Cramer was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Cramer was born in Denver, Colorado. He was three years old when his parents moved to St. Petersburg, Florida. He attended the public schools and St...
ran as the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by the retiring Democrat Spessard Holland
Spessard Holland
Spessard Lindsey Holland was an American lawyer, politician and elected officeholder. He was the 28th Governor of Florida from 1941 until 1945, during World War II. After finishing his term as governor, he was a United States Senator from Florida from 1946 until 1971...
. Gurney and then Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr.
Claude R. Kirk, Jr.
Claude Roy Kirk, Jr. was the 36th Governor of the U.S. state of Florida . He was the first Republican Governor of Florida since Reconstruction.-Early life:...
opposed Cramer's nomination and supported an intraparty rival, former U.S. Supreme Court nominee George Harrold Carswell
Harold Carswell
George Harrold Carswell was a Federal Judge and an unsuccessful nominee to the United States Supreme Court. He did not use his first name and was called by his middle name, Harrold.-Early years:...
. Cramer easily defeated Carswell for the Senate nomination but was then defeated in the fall, when a divided GOP worked to the benefit of the Democratic senatorial nominee, then State Senator Lawton Chiles
Lawton Chiles
Lawton Mainor Chiles, Jr. was an American politician from the US state of Florida. In a career spanning four decades, Chiles, a Democrat who never lost an election, served in the Florida House of Representatives , the Florida State Senate , the United States Senate , and as the 41st Governor of...
of Lakeland
Lakeland, Florida
Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States, located approximately midway between Tampa and Orlando along Interstate 4. According to the 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, the city had a population of 94,406...
.
In 1973 Gurney was named to the Senate committee under Sam J. Ervin investigating the Watergate scandal. He was the Nixon administration's strongest supporter on the committee. Gurney was embroiled in an influence peddling
Influence peddling
Influence peddling is the illegal practice of using one's influence in government or connections with persons in authority to obtain favors or preferential treatment for another, usually in return for payment. Also called traffic of influence or trading in influence ...
scandal in 1974, which caused him to not seek re-election in 1974. He was indicted and tried on seven counts of bribery and related offenses. During the first trial, he was found not guilty of five counts, and the jury could not reach a verdict on two counts. Later, he was retried on those two counts and was also found not guilty. He ran for Congress in 1978, but was heavily defeated by now U.S. Senator Bill Nelson
Bill Nelson
Clarence William "Bill" Nelson is the senior United States Senator from the state of Florida and a member of the Democratic Party. He is a former U.S. Representative and former Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida...
.
Gurney retired to resume the practice of law in Winter Park, where he died.