Alan John Dixon (July 7, 1927 – July 6, 2014) was an American politician and member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
who served in the
Illinois General Assembly
The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...
from 1951 to 1971, as the
Illinois Treasurer
The Treasurer of Illinois is an elected official of the U.S. state of Illinois. The office was created by the Constitution of Illinois.
Current Occupant
The current Treasurer of Illinois is Democrat Mike Frerichs. He was first elected to head t ...
from 1971 to 1977, as the
Illinois Secretary of State
The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary of State keeps the state records, laws, libr ...
from 1977 to 1981 and as a
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
from 1981 until 1993.
Early life
Born in
Belleville, Illinois
Belleville is a city and the county seat of St. Clair County, Illinois, coterminous with the now defunct Belleville Township. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville and the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. The p ...
on July 7, 1927,
Dixon attended Illinois public schools and later earned his bachelor's degree from the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
and his
J.D. from
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...
. While attending the University of Illinois, he joined the
Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834 at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek Letter Organizations#Greek letters, Greek-let ...
fraternity. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Dixon served in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
.
State political career
General Assembly
Dixon served as a member of the
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...
from 1951 to 1963 and as a member of the
Illinois State Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the State of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. Under the I ...
from 1963 to 1971, serving as Minority Whip for part of that time.
Karl Rove and the Dixon campaign incident
In the fall of 1970,
Karl Rove
Karl Christian Rove (born December 25, 1950) is an American Republican political consultant, policy advisor, and lobbyist. He was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff during the George W. Bush administration until his resignation on August 3 ...
, a future
White House Deputy Chief of Staff
The White House deputy chief of staff is officially the top aide to the White House chief of staff, who is the senior aide to the president of the United States. The deputy chief of staff usually has an office in the West Wing and is responsible ...
in the
George W. Bush Administration
George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic in ...
, used a
false identity
Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. The term ''identity theft'' was co ...
to enter the office of Dixon's campaign for
Illinois Treasurer
The Treasurer of Illinois is an elected official of the U.S. state of Illinois. The office was created by the Constitution of Illinois.
Current Occupant
The current Treasurer of Illinois is Democrat Mike Frerichs. He was first elected to head t ...
and stole 1000 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 the ''
Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...
'' in 1999, "It was a youthful prank at the age of 19 and I regret it."
1976 elections
In 1976, Dixon was elected
Illinois Secretary of State
The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary of State keeps the state records, laws, libr ...
. The 1976 Illinois State election was turbulent for the Democratic Party. Outgoing Governor
Dan 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 Governor
James R. Thompson
James Robert Thompson Jr. (May 8, 1936 – August 14, 2020), also known as Big Jim Thompson, was an American attorney and politician who served as the 37th governor of Illinois from 1977 to 1991. A moderate Republican who sometimes took more ...
that he would resign after Thompson was inaugurated if Thompson agreed to Dixon's choice for State Treasurer. Dixon's choice was
Donald 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 a
United States senator
The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
from Illinois.
United States Senate
Dixon was generally considered a moderate and was less visible nationally than either of his Illinois colleagues,
Charles Percy and
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...
, both of whom sought the presidency. In 1992, Dixon lost in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate to
Carol Moseley Braun
Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun, also sometimes Moseley-Braun (born August 16, 1947), is a former U.S. Senator, an American diplomat, politician, and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999. Prior to her Senate ...
. 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 confirm
Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George H. W. Bush to succeed Thurgood Marshall and has served since 199 ...
to the
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
contributed to his defeat. Dixon was sharply criticized during the campaign by Braun for supporting Clarence Thomas' nomination despite allegations of Thomas sexually harassing Anita Hill.
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.
The ''Chicago Tribune'' ran a piece in which
Eric Zorn
Eric Zorn (born January 6, 1958) is a former American op-ed columnist and daily blogger for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who specialized in local news as well as politics.
Early life and education
Zorn is a graduate of the University of Michigan, wher ...
claimed that Dixon's voting to confirm Clarence Thomas in 1991 set off a chain of events that led to
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
's election as president in 2008.
Later life and death
Dixon chaired the Defense
Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) is a process by a United States federal government commission to increase United States Department of Defense efficiency by coordinating the realignment and closure of military installations following the end o ...
Commission in 1994 and 1995.
After his term in the Senate, Dixon resumed practicing law with the
Bryan Cave
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP is an international law firm with 25 offices worldwide. Bryan Cave was headquartered in St Louis, Missouri. Berwin Leighton Paisner was headquartered in London.
In 2018, Bryan Cave and Berwin Leighton Paisner me ...
law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...
in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
and lived in
Fairview Heights, Illinois
Fairview Heights is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,078 at the 2010 census. Fairview Heights is a dominant shopping center for Southern Illinois and includes numerous shopping plazas and the St. Clair S ...
, where he died on July 6, 2014, from
natural causes
In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...
just 1 day shy of his 87th birthday.
His autobiography, ''The Gentleman from Illinois: Stories from Forty Years of Elective Public Service'', was published in 2013 by
Southern Illinois University Press
Southern Illinois University Press or SIU Press, founded in 1956, is a university press located in Carbondale, Illinois, owned and operated by Southern Illinois University.
The press publishes approximately 50 titles annually, among its more tha ...
.
Awards
Alan J. Dixon was inducted as a Laureate of
The Lincoln Academy of Illinois
The Lincoln Academy of Illinois is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to recognizing contributions made by living Illinoisans. Named for Abraham Lincoln, the Academy administers the ''Order of Lincoln'', the highest award given ...
and awarded the Order of Lincoln (the State's highest honor) by the
Governor of Illinois
The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois, and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by p ...
in 1994 in the area of Government.
Electoral history
* 1980 General Election - U.S. Senate
** Alan J. Dixon (D), 56.0%
**
Dave O'Neal
David C. O’Neal (January 24, 1937 – July 10, 2021) was an American politician who served as the 41st Lieutenant Governor of Illinois from 1977 to 1981. For six years he served as Saint Clair County Sheriff, the first Republican to hold tha ...
(R), 42.5%
* 1986 General Election - U.S. Senate
** Alan J. Dixon (D) (inc.), 65.4%
**
Judy Koehler
Judy Koehler (born September 20, 1941) is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives and Illinois Appellate Court Justice.
Illinois House of Representatives
Koehler was first elected to the I ...
(R), 34.1%
* 1992 Democratic Primary - U.S. Senate
**
Carol Moseley Braun
Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun, also sometimes Moseley-Braun (born August 16, 1947), is a former U.S. Senator, an American diplomat, politician, and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999. Prior to her Senate ...
(D), 38.30%
** Alan J. Dixon (D) (inc.), 34.61%
** Albert Hofeld (D), 27.09%
References
External links
Chicago Tribune obituary*
*
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, -
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dixon, Alan J.
1927 births
2014 deaths
United States Navy personnel of World War II
Democratic Party United States senators from Illinois
Illinois lawyers
Democratic Party Illinois state senators
Democratic Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives
People from Belleville, Illinois
Secretaries of State of Illinois
State treasurers of Illinois
United States Navy sailors
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni
Washington University School of Law alumni
Writers from Illinois