Marion E. Burks (November 18, 1912 – November 29, 1989) was an American politician, judge, and lawyer. Born in

Eldorado, Illinois Eldorado () is a city in Saline County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,122 at the 2010 census, with a 1980 peak of 5,198. Although the city's name is spelled as if it were Spanish, the name was originally "Eldereado" or “Elder-Re ...

, Burks graduated from Eldorado Township High School in 1931. Burks received his bachelor's degree from

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, H ...

, in 1935, and his master's degree in education from

University of Illinois 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 University ...

, in 1940. He taught school in Eldorado, Illinois and then he received his law degree from

Lincoln College of Law Lincoln College of Law was a law college in Springfield, Illinois from 1911 to 1953. In 1924, the Lincoln College of Law added a junior college program for training paralegals A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant, or paralegal specialist ...

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest o ...

, in 1945. He practiced law in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

. He also served as assistant director of the Illinois Department of Insurance and was chairman of the Central Casualty Company. He served in 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 1957 to 1963 and was 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 ...

. In 1962, Burks ran for the Republican nomination for 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

. However, he lost the primary to

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...

. Burks served as Illinois Circuit Court judge for

Cook County, Illinois Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

from 1976 to 1984. Burks died at an extended care facility in

Sun City, Arizona Sun City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, that is located within the Phoenix metropolitan area. The population was 39,931 as of the 2020 United Sta ...

Notes

1912 births 1989 deaths People from Eldorado, Illinois Politicians from Evanston, Illinois Lawyers from Evanston, Illinois Murray State University alumni University of Illinois College of Education alumni Businesspeople from Illinois Educators from Illinois Illinois state court judges Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives 20th-century American legislators Lincoln College of Law alumni 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American judges 20th-century Illinois politicians {{Illinois-Ilrepresentative-stub