Dan Walker (politician)
Daniel J. Walker (August 6, 1922 – April 29, 2015) was an American lawyer, businessman and politician from Illinois. A member of the Democratic party, he served as the 36th governor of Illinois, from 1973 until 1977. Born in Washington, D.C., Walker was raised in San Diego, before serving in the Navy as an enlisted man and officer during World War II and the Korean War. He moved to Illinois between the wars to attend Northwestern University School of Law, entering politics in the state during the 1960s.
Dan Walker | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 1973 | |
| 36th Governor of Illinois | |
| In office January 8, 1973 – January 10, 1977 | |
| Lieutenant | Neil Hartigan |
| Preceded by | Richard Ogilvie |
| Succeeded by | James Thompson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 6, 1922 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Died | April 29, 2015 (aged 92) Chula Vista, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouses | Roberta Dowse
(m. 1947; div. 1977)Roberta Nelson
(m. 1979; div. 1989)Lillian Stewart (m. 1996) |
| Children | 8 |
| Education | United States Naval Academy (BS) Northwestern University (JD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1940–1941 1945–1947 1951 |
| Battles/wars | World War II Korean War |
Walker was perhaps best known for walking the state of Illinois in 1971 during his candidacy for governor and for being an outsider to Illinois' machine politics. Running against the machine's candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor, Walker scored a rare upset in the March 1972 primary election. He went on that year to defeat the Republican incumbent, but lost his own bid for re-election in 1976. His post political career was marked by high living, but marred by a guilty plea to bank fraud and perjury at the peak of the late 1980s savings and loan crisis. After a year and a half in federal prison, Walker retired to the San Diego metro area and wrote several books before he died in 2015.