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| | + | {{Officeholder |
| | + | |name=John Jennings, Jr. |
| | + | |image=John Jennings, Jr..png |
| | + | |party=[[Republican]] |
| | + | |spouse=Pearnie Ethel Hamby |
| | + | |religion= |
| | + | |offices= |
| | + | {{Officeholder/representative |
| | + | |state=Tennessee |
| | + | |district=2nd |
| | + | |terms=December 30, 1939 – January 3, 1951 |
| | + | |preceded=[[J. Will Taylor]] |
| | + | |former=y |
| | + | |succeeded=[[Howard Baker, Sr.]] |
| | + | }} |
| | + | }} |
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| | '''John Jennings, Jr.''' (June 6, 1880 – February 27, 1956) was a [[Tennessee]] [[Republican]] who represented the state's 2nd congressional district mostly during the 1940s, succeeding [[James Willis Taylor]], who died in office. He was previously a delegate to the Republican National Conventions three times during the 1910s, in addition to being a special assistant to the [[United States Attorney General]]. | | '''John Jennings, Jr.''' (June 6, 1880 – February 27, 1956) was a [[Tennessee]] [[Republican]] who represented the state's 2nd congressional district mostly during the 1940s, succeeding [[James Willis Taylor]], who died in office. He was previously a delegate to the Republican National Conventions three times during the 1910s, in addition to being a special assistant to the [[United States Attorney General]]. |
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| | ==U.S. House of Representatives== | | ==U.S. House of Representatives== |
| − | Jennings voted for the 1940 Gavagan-Fish<ref>FascinatingPolitics (July 1, 2018). [https://fascinatingpolitics.com/2018/07/01/on-ideology-and-anti-lynching-legislation/ On Ideology and Anti-Lynching Legislation]. ''Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> [[anti-lynching bill]].<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/76-3/h96 TO PASS H.R. 801, A BILL TO MAKE LYNCHING A FEDERAL CRIME.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> | + | ===Death of Taylor, special election=== |
| | + | Following the death of incumbent popular congressman [[J. Will Taylor|James Willis "J. Will" Taylor, Jr.]] in 1939, Jennings was among several Republican contenders for the seat, which included Taylor's older daughter Elizabeth.<ref>Hill, Ray (September 3, 2018). [https://knoxfocus.com/archives/this-weeks-focus/mystery-j-will-taylors-death-ii/ The Mystery After J. Will Taylor’s Death, II]. ''The Knoxville Focus''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> However, Elizabeth Taylor ultimately decided against running for her late father's seat, citing her mother's ill health. |
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| | + | [[File:John Jennings, Jr. bioguide picture.jpg|thumb|left|155px]] |
| | + | Jennings, who previously unsuccessfully sought to primary Taylor, subsequently received the GOP nomination and faced [[Democrat]] Hammond Fowler, who attacked the authenticity of his support for the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] ([[TVA]]),<ref>Hill, Ray (September 9, 2018). [https://knoxfocus.com/archives/this-weeks-focus/fight-succeed-j-will-taylor/ The Fight To Succeed J. Will Taylor]. ''The Knoxville Focus''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> an extremely popular [[New Deal]] agency in the state. Despite such, Jennings still defeated Fowler by a landslide.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=310771 TN - District 02 - Special Election Race - Dec 30, 1939]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | He would be re-elected five times in 1940, 1942, 1944, 1946, and 1948.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=129423 Candidate - John Jennings]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | ===Tenure=== |
| | + | Jennings carried the brand of conservatism held by his neighboring colleague [[B. Carroll Reece]] and the late Taylor, voting with the political right three-quarters of the time during his first months in Congress for the 1939–1940 session.<ref>FascinatingPolitics (March 2020). [https://fascinatingpolitics.files.wordpress.com/2020/03/1939-40-mc-index-3.pdf 1939-40-mc-index-3.pdf]. ''Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History''. Retrieved August 24, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | Jennings voted for the 1940 Gavagan-[[Hamilton Fish, III|Fish]]<ref>FascinatingPolitics (July 1, 2018). [https://fascinatingpolitics.com/2018/07/01/on-ideology-and-anti-lynching-legislation/ On Ideology and Anti-Lynching Legislation]. ''Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> [[anti-lynching bill]],<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/76-3/h96 TO PASS H.R. 801, A BILL TO MAKE LYNCHING A FEDERAL CRIME.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> in addition to an anti-[[poll tax]] measure two years later.<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/77-1942/h150 TO PASS H.R. 1024 WHICH DECLARES ILLEGAL THE REQUIREMENT OF A POLL TAX AS A PREREQUISITE FOR VOTING OR REGISTERING TO VOTE FOR PRESIDENT, VICE-PRESIDENT, OR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | During the 1945–46 congressional session, Jennings' MC-Index<ref group=note>FascinatingPolitics.com utilizes a "Mike's Conservative Index" (MC-Index) to track the level of conservatism among representatives and senators based on their voting record, with the scale ranging from 0% (most liberal) to 100% (most conservative).</ref> was 92%.<ref>FascinatingPolitics (July 2020). [https://fascinatingpolitics.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/1945-46-civil-rights-converted.pdf 1945-46-civil-rights-converted.pdf]. ''Mad Politics: The Bizarre, Fascinating, and Unknown of American Political History''. Retrieved August 24, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | In the [[1950 Midterm Elections]], Jennings faced a primary challenge from [[Howard Baker, Sr.]] (the father of later Tennessee U.S. senator [[Howard Baker, Jr.]]), and lost renomination in a landslide.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=417671 TN District 2 - R Primary Race - Aug 03, 1950]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> He missed five percent of all [[roll call vote]]s during his congressional tenure.<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/john_jennings/405998 Rep. John Jennings Jr.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved August 5, 2021.</ref> |
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| | + | ==See also== |
| | + | *[[Leonidas Houk]], Republican representative from the state's 2nd district in the late 1800s |
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| | ==References== | | ==References== |
| | {{reflist}} | | {{reflist}} |
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| | + | ===Notes=== |
| | + | {{reflist1904|group=note}} |
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| | ==External links== | | ==External links== |
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| | [[Category:Former United States Representatives]] | | [[Category:Former United States Representatives]] |
| | [[Category:Republicans]] | | [[Category:Republicans]] |
| | + | [[Category:Conservatives]] |
| | + | [[Category:Civil Rights]] |
| | + | [[Category:Old Republicans (The South)]] |
| | + | [[Category:1930s]] |
| | + | [[Category:1940s]] |