James Douglas "Mike" McKevitt (October 26, 1928 – September 28, 2000) was an American lawyer and politician who served one term as a U.S. Representative from Colorado from 1971 to 1973.
Early life and education
Born in Spokane, Washington, McKevitt graduated from Grant High School in Sacramento, California. He received a B.A. from the University of Idaho (Moscow, Idaho) in 1951, and a law degree from the University of Denver School of Law in 1956.
Military
He was in the United States Air Force from 1951 to 1953, rising to the rank of captain.
Career
He was a lawyer in private practice. He served as assistant attorney general, Colorado state attorney general's office from 1958 to 1967. He served as District Attorney, Denver, Colorado from 1967 to 1971, during which time McKevitt became known for prosecuting and harassing Denver's "hippies" and the restaurants where they would eat.[1][2]
Congress
McKevitt was elected as a Republican to the Ninety-second Congress (January 3, 1971 – January 3, 1973). That year, 20-year incumbent Democrat Byron Rogers had been defeated in the primary by a considerably more liberal Democrat, attorney Craig Barnes. Several of Rogers' more conservative supporters threw their support to McKevitt in the general election. The split in the party combined with McKevitt's popularity to allow McKevitt to win by 10,000 votes. However, McKevitt was a conservative Republican in a strongly Democratic district, and he was defeated for reelection to the Ninety-third Congress in 1972 by liberal Democrat Pat Schroeder.
Later career
McKevitt remained in Washington for some time after his brief congressional term, serving as Assistant United States Attorney General, Office of Legislation in 1973, a counsel on energy policy the White House from 1973 to 1974, and a member of the Korean War Memorial Commission from 1987 to 1995.
Death and burial
He died on September 28, 2000, in Washington, D.C. He was interred at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mike McKevitt | 84,643 | 51.50% | |||
| Democratic | Craig S. Barnes | 74,444 | 45.30% | |||
| Raza Unida | Salvadore Carpio, Jr. | 5,257 | 3.20% | |||
| Majority | 10,199 | 6.20% | ||||
| Total votes | 164,344 | 100% | ||||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Pat Schroeder | 101,832 | 51.56% | |||
| Republican | Mike McKevitt (incumbent) | 93,733 | 47.46% | |||
| Raza Unida | Maria Pauline Serna | 1,629 | 0.82% | |||
| Socialist Workers | Fern Gapin | 301 | 0.15% | |||
| Majority | 8,099 | 4.10% | ||||
| Total votes | 197,495 | 100% | ||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||||
References
- ^ Denver District Attorney's Office McKevitt vs Denver's "hippies"
- ^ [1] McKevitt vs Denver hippies' restaurants
- ^ "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 3, 1970" (PDF). Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Compiled from official sources by Benjamin J. Guthrie, under direction of W. Pat Jennings. May 1, 1971. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 5, 2007. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 7, 1972" (PDF). Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Compiled from official sources by Benjamin J. Guthrie, under direction of W. Pat Jennings. March 15, 1973. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 5, 2007. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
- United States Congress. "Mike McKevitt (id: M000513)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
