Thomas Kuchel

Thomas Henry Kuchel ( born August 15, 1910 in Anaheim, California, † November 21, 1994 in Beverly Hills, California ) was an American politician ( Republican), who represented the state of California in the U.S. Senate.

Early years and political rise

Thomas Kuchel studied law at the Law School of the University of Southern California and was in 1932 with the completion of his degree summa cum laude. In 1935 he received his PhD at the same university as Dr. jur. and was even sworn in the same year in court. In Anaheim, he then opened a law practice and led it until 1946. During his time as a lawyer, he was also still 1936-1939 California Republican congressman Parliament and then sat from 1940 to 1945 in the state Senate.

U.S. Senator

In 1946 was Kuchel California State Controller, responsible for the budget of the State, and remained so until 1953. On 2 January this year he was appointed by Governor Earl Warren to the U.S. Senator for California to fill the vacant seat of Richard Nixon who had been elected to the U.S. Vice President. In the by-election on November 2, 1954, he was officially elected by the people as Senator and managed to be confirmed at the elections in 1956 and 1962. During his time in the Senate Kuchel supported a racially -friendly policies; he was instrumental in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which broke down the racial segregation in the United States. Kuchel fell out after, however, with the former leader of the Republican faction in the Senate, William F. Knowland, when it came to the question of which candidate would compete in the next presidential election for the Republicans. While Kuchel the liberal Nelson Rockefeller preferred to Knowland continued for the conservative Barry Goldwater in. This dispute was the end for Kuchels political career. In the primaries for Senate 1968 election certain party members that he no longer should pursue. Instead, the California Education Minister Max Rafferty was sent into the race for the Senate seat; However, he could not prevail against the Democratic candidate Alan Cranston, who took 1969 Kuchels successor on January 3. Since this mandate is firmly in the hands of the Democratic Party.

Private

Kuchel opened his law office again and they operate only in Washington, DC, and later again in California. After his retirement in 1981 he moved his retirement home to Beverly Hills, where he died on 21 November 1994. Thomas Kuchel was married since 1942 with Betty Kuchel born Mellenthin, they had a daughter.