Frank L. Smith

Frank L. Smith

Frank Leslie Smith (born November 24, 1867 in Dwight , Livingston County , Illinois , †  August 30, 1950 there ) was an American politician . Between 1919 and 1921 he represented the state of Illinois in the US House of Representatives .

Career

Frank Smith attended public schools in his home country. He later worked in banking, real estate, insurance, and agriculture. Politically, he joined the Republican Party . In 1894 he was employed as a village clerk with his home ward Dwight ; In 1904 he applied unsuccessfully for the office of lieutenant governor of Illinois. In 1905 and 1906 he worked for the tax authorities.

In the 1918 congressional elections , Smith was elected to the 17th constituency of Illinois in the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC , where he succeeded the late John Allen Sterling on March 4, 1919 . Since he renounced another candidacy in 1920, he could only complete one term in Congress until March 3, 1921 . The 18th and 19th amendments to the Constitution were ratified in 1919 and 1920 . It was about the ban on trade in alcoholic beverages and the nationwide introduction of women's suffrage .

In 1920 Smith ran unsuccessfully for his party's nomination for the US Senate election . He then resumed his previous activities. He was also chairman of the state's Illinois Commerce Commission between 1920 and 1926 . In 1926, Smith was named by Governor Len Small to succeed the late US Senator William B. McKinley . This appointment was not recognized by the Senate because Frank Smith, who at the time of his appointment was already campaigning for the regular Senate elections of 1926, had violated campaign regulations. He was accused of fraud and corruption. After winning the regular election of 1926, he could have entered Congress on March 4, 1927. There, however, he was refused admission for the same reasons. The mandate thus remained vacant for the time being. It was not reoccupied until 1928 with Otis F. Glenn .

In 1930, Frank Smith ran unsuccessfully for his return to the US House of Representatives. Two years later he became a member of the Republican National Committee . Otherwise he continued his previous activities. He also became chairman of the board of the First National Bank of Dwight . He died on August 30, 1950 in Dwight, where he was also buried.

Web links

• Frank L. Smith in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)