William Jennings Bryan Dorn

Who was William Jennings Bryan Dorn?

William Jennings Bryan Dorn was a United States politician from South Carolina who represented the western part of the state in the United States House of Representatives from 1947 to 1949 and from 1951 to 1975 as a Democrat.

Dorn, named after William Jennings Bryan, was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 1938 and to the South Carolina Senate in 1940. He served in the Army Air Force in Europe during World War II.

Dorn was first elected to Congress in the 1946 election. In the 1948 election, he unsuccessfully ran for the United States Senate seat that was later held by Strom Thurmond.

Dorn returned to the House in the 1950 election. Dorn was known for his work on issues related to the military and civil rights. He left Congress to run for Governor of South Carolina in 1974. He lost the Democratic primary to Charles D. Ravenel, who was soon ruled ineligible on residency grounds required by the state constitution. A special state convention then chose Dorn as the Democratic candidate. He was defeated in the general election by Republican James B. Edwards, one of the few disappointments in what was generally a big year for Democrats. In 1978, Dorn again sought the Democratic nomination for Governor but was eliminated in a three way race won by Richard Riley. In 1980, he was elected chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party.