Daniel French Slaughter Jr. (May 20, 1925 – October 2, 1998) was an American politician and member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from January 3, 1985, until his resignation on November 5, 1991.

Early life and education

Daniel Slaughter Jr. was born in Culpeper, Virginia, and attended public schools in

Culpeper County Culpeper County is a county located along the borderlands of the northern and central region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 52,552. Its county seat and only incorporated community is Cul ...

. He attended

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

and graduated in 1953 with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

and

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

, where he was a member of the

Raven Society The Raven Society is an honor society at the University of Virginia, founded in 1904 by University student William McCully James, and named in honor of the famous poem by Edgar Allan Poe, who attended UVa in 1826. According to its constitution, on ...

and of St. Anthony Hall.

Early career

Slaughter served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

in combat infantry from 1943 to 1947 and was awarded the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

. He was admitted to the bar and practiced law in Culpeper. He served in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-number ...

from 1958 to 1978, serving as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

until 1974, when he became an independent. In the early 1960s, he supported " massive resistance" to court-ordered

school integration School integration in the United States is the process (also known as desegregation) of ending Race (human categorization), race-based Racial segregation in the United States, segregation within American public and private schools. School segreg ...

. He was a member of the board of visitors of the University of Virginia from 1978 to 1982, where he also served as rector from 1980 to 1982. From 1981 to 1984 he served as aide to

John Otho Marsh Jr. John Otho Marsh Jr. (August 7, 1926 – February 4, 2019) was an American politician and an adjunct professor at George Mason University School of Law. Early life Marsh was born in Winchester, Virginia, Winchester, Virginia. He graduated from ...

, the Secretary of the Army.

Congressional career

Slaughter was elected from the 7th congressional district of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in 1984 as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. He was reelected three more times. However, he resigned on November 5, 1991, due to a series of strokes. He died in Charlottesville, Virginia, on October 2, 1998.

Electoral history

*1984; Slaughter was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives with 56.5% of the vote, defeating Democrat Lewis M. Costello and Independent R.E. Frazier. *1986; Slaughter was re-elected unopposed. *1988; Slaughter was re-elected unopposed. *1990; Slaughter was re-elected with 58.19% of the vote, defeating Democrat David M. Smith.

External links

Virginia House of Delegates bio for D. Slaughter
* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Slaughter, D. French Jr. 1925 births 1998 deaths People from Culpeper, Virginia University of Virginia School of Law alumni Members of the Virginia House of Delegates Military personnel from Virginia United States Army personnel of World War II Virginia lawyers Virginia Democrats Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American politicians