Tom Railsback

Tom Railsback
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 19th district
In office January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1983
Preceded by	Gale Schisler
Succeeded by	Daniel Bever Crane
Member of the Illinois House of Representatives
In office 1962–1966
Personal details
Born	Thomas Fisher Railsback (1932-01-22)January 22, 1932 Moline, Illinois, U.S.
Died	January 20, 2020(2020-01-20) (aged 87) Mesa, Arizona
Political party	Republican

Thomas Fisher Railsback (January 22, 1932 – January 20, 2020) was an American politician who served eight terms in the United States Congress from 1967–1983 for Illinois's 19th congressional district in Moline.

Early life

Railsback attended public schools in Moline, received a B.A. from Grinnell College in 1954; and a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, Chicago in 1957. He served in the United States Army from 1957-59.

Political career

Railsback served as a member of the Illinois State House of Representatives from 1962–1966 before being elected as a Republican to Congress in 1966. He was elected in 1966 defeating freshman Democrat Gale Schisler in a hotly competitive race. The race was a very friendly one with little to no negative attacks on each other, though Railsback credited his victory to the unpopularity of President Lyndon Johnson.

A moderate Republican, he served on the House Judiciary Committee in the mid-1970s. He voted for one of the articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon when they were pending in committee, one of six Republicans to support at least one article. In 1980, the Congressman was one of three U.S. House members (the others were future Vice President Dan Quayle (R-Indiana) and Tom Evans (R-Delaware)) involved in the controversial Florida golfing trip with lobbyist Paula Parkinson.

In 1982, Railsback's district was renumbered as the 17th District; Illinois had lost two districts after the 1980 census. He was defeated for renomination by a considerably more conservative Republican, State Senator Kenneth G. McMillan. McMillan was defeated by Democrat Lane Evans in November. After leaving Congress, he worked as a lobbyist for the telecommunications industry and federal judges association.

Electoral history

• Election of November 8, 1966
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 77,895 (52%)
  • Gale Schisler (D) – 71,050 (48%)
• Election of November 5, 1968
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 114,948 63%
  • Craig Lovitt (D) – 66,135 (37%)
• Election of November 3, 1970
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 92,247 (68%)
  • James L. Shaw (D) – 43,094 (32%)
• Election of November 7, 1972
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 138,123 100%)
• Election of November 4, 1974
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 84,049 (65%)
  • James Gende (D) – 44,677 (35%)
• Election of November 2, 1976
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 132,571 (68%)
  • John Craver (D) – 60,967 (32%)
• Election of November 7, 1978
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 89,770 )100%)
• Election of November 4, 1980
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 142,616 (73%)
  • Thomas J. Hand (D) – 51,753 (27%)
• Primary Election of March 16, 1982
  • Kenneth G. McMillan (R) – 24,147 (51%)
  • Thomas F. Railsback (R) – 23,068 (49%)

External links

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Political Graveyard
• Appearances on C-SPAN