Paul Harvey Cunningham (June 15, 1890 – July 16, 1961) served nine consecutive terms as a Republican

U.S. Representative 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 c ...

from Iowa. First elected in 1940, he was re-elected eight times, and defeated in 1958. Born on a farm in

Indiana County, Pennsylvania Indiana County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the west central part of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 83,246. Its county seat is Indiana. Indiana County comprises the Indiana, PA Mic ...

near Kent, Cunningham attended the public schools. He graduated from State Teachers College, Indiana, Pennsylvania, in 1911, from the literary department of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1914, and from its

Law School A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

in 1915. He was admitted to the bar in 1915 and commenced practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During the First World War, from 1917 to 1919, he served as a first lieutenant in the Infantry. He moved to Des Moines, Iowa, in 1919 and continued the practice of law. He served as member of the Iowa National Guard from 1920 to 1923. He was elected to the Iowa House of Representatives in 1933, and served until 1937. On February 4, 1940, Congressman Cassius C. Dowell died, thereby creating a vacancy in

Iowa's 6th congressional district Iowa's 6th congressional district is a former U.S. congressional district in the State of Iowa. It existed in elections from 1862 to 1992, when it was lost due to Iowa's population growth rate being lower than that of the country as a whole. T ...

. Cunningham fell four votes short of receiving the Republican Party's nomination as its candidate in the March 5, 1940 special election. Although

Robert K. Goodwin Robert Kingman Goodwin (May 23, 1905 – February 21, 1983) was a Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa from a March 1940 special election until the end of his term in January 1941. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Goodwin attended the public schools ...

received the nomination and won the special election, Cunningham received his party's nomination for the 1940 general election, where he defeated E. Frank Fox. Iowa's districts were reapportioned before the next election to reflect the loss of one Iowa seat, placing Cunningham's home county (Polk) in Iowa's 5th congressional district. In 1942, and in the next eight elections, Cunningham was re-elected to Congress from that district. In 1958, Cunningham faced a challenge from Neal Smith, then seeking his first term. Two weeks before the election, Cunningham was slightly favored to win, based on a split within the Polk County Democratic Party's organization. However, Smith defeated Cunningham, winning his first of eighteen terms. Cunningham's congressional service began January 3, 1941, and ended January 3, 1959. Cunningham voted in favor of the

Civil Rights Act of 1957 The Civil Rights Act of 1957 was the first federal civil rights legislation passed by the United States Congress since the Civil Rights Act of 1875. The bill was passed by the 85th United States Congress and signed into law by President Dwigh ...

. After his defeat, Cunningham resumed the practice of law. He died at his summer home on Gull Lake, Brainerd, Minnesota, on July 16, 1961. He was interred in Masonic Cemetery, Des Moines, Iowa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Paul Harvey 1890 births 1961 deaths People from Indiana County, Pennsylvania American Presbyterians University of Michigan Law School alumni United States Army officers Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa 20th-century American politicians Military personnel from Pennsylvania