Owen Bradford Pickett (August 31, 1930 – October 27, 2010) was a Democratic 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

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 ...

Early life

Pickett was born in Richmond, Virginia on August 31, 1930. He graduated from

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

in 1952 and the

University of Richmond School of Law The University of Richmond School of Law (Richmond Law) is a school of the University of Richmond, located in Richmond, Virginia. Richmond Law is ranked 52nd (tie) in the US by ''US News'', among the ''top five value'' law schools by the ''Natio ...

in 1955. Pickett was admitted to the Virginia State bar in 1955, and practiced law in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

State political career

Pickett served as a member of 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 1972 until 1986, representing a district centered on

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...

. During this time, he also served as chairman of the

Democratic Party of Virginia The Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA/VA Dems) is the Virginia affiliate of the Democratic Party based in Richmond, Virginia. Historically, the Democratic Party has dominated Virginia politics. Since the 1851 Virginia gubernatorial election, the ...

from 1980 until 1982. Pickett was considered the unopposed favorite for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 1982 to run for the seat of retiring Democratic-turned-independent U.S. Senator

Harry F. Byrd Jr. Harry Flood Byrd Jr. (December 20, 1914 – July 30, 2013) was an American orchardist, newspaper publisher and politician. He served in the Senate of Virginia and then represented Virginia in the United States Senate, succeeding his father, Harr ...

In announcing his candidacy, Pickett paid tribute to the Byrd Organization, the political "machine" led by Senator Byrd's father, the late Virginia Governor and U.S. Senator

Harry F. Byrd Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (June 10, 1887 – October 20, 1966) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and leader of the Democratic Party in Virginia for four decades as head of a political faction that became known as the Byrd Organization. ...

, Sr. The reference enraged State Senator L. Douglas Wilder of Richmond, who found Pickett's glowing references to a political machine that supported segregation unacceptable. Wilder said he would mount an independent candidacy if Pickett won the Democratic nomination. Pickett realized that Wilder was serious, and concluded that he would likely lose a three-way race with Wilder and the Republican nominee, Congressman

Paul Trible Paul Seward Trible Jr. (born December 29, 1946) is an American attorney, politician and academic administrator. Trible was the former president of Christopher Newport University until his retirement in 2021. He was a Republican politician from V ...

. He pulled out of the race, and the Democrats instead nominated Lt. Governor

Richard Joseph Davis Richard Joseph Davis Jr. (August 7, 1921 – March 4, 1999) was the 34th Lieutenant Governor of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 serving under Governor Chuck Robb. A former mayor of Portsmouth, Virginia, Davis' 1981 election as Lieutenant Governo ...

, who lost narrowly to Trible in the 1982 general election.

Congressional career

Meanwhile, voters of

Virginia's 2nd congressional district Virginia's second congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It currently encompasses all of Accomack, Northampton, and York Counties; all of the independent cities of Virginia Beach and Willia ...

elected Pickett in 1986 to become their U.S. Representative. Re-elected several times (and facing no opponent in 1998), Pickett represented the district from January 3, 1987 until January 3, 2001, announcing in 2000 that he was not a candidate for reelection to the 107th Congress. The Owen B. Pickett U.S. Custom House in Norfolk, Virginia was named in his honor in 2001.

Electoral history

*1986; Pickett defeated Republican A. Joe Canada Jr. and Independent Stephen P. Shao, winning 49.48% of the vote. *1988; Pickett defeated Republican Jerry R. Curry and Independents Stephen P. Shao and Robert A. Smith, winning 60.55% of the vote. *1990; Pickett defeated Independent Harry G. Broskie, winning 77.61% of the vote. *1992; Pickett defeated Republican J.L. Chapman, winning 56.03% of the vote. *1994; Pickett defeated Republican Chapman, winning 59.05% of the vote. *1996; Pickett defeated Republican John F. Tate, winning 57.72% of the vote. *1998; Pickett was unopposed for re-election in 1998.

Death

Pickett died on October 27, 2010 after several years of ill health.

References

External links

* 1930 births 2010 deaths Democratic Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates Democratic Party of Virginia chairs Virginia lawyers Politicians from Richmond, Virginia University of Richmond School of Law alumni Virginia Tech alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia 20th-century American politicians Lawyers from Richmond, Virginia 20th-century American lawyers {{Virginia-Representative-stub