David Towell

Who was David Towell?

David Gilmer Towell served a single term as a United States Representative from Nevada, representing the state's at-large district. He was a Republican. A real estate broker by profession, he ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1972. He won in a big upset, helped by a bitter Democratic primary in which veteran conservative incumbent Walter Baring was defeated for renomination by a more liberal candidate, James Bilbray. Boosted by the divided opposition and a late endorsement from Baring himself, Towell won by a narrow margin. In 1974, Towell ran for reelection, but was soundly defeated by a more conservative Democrat, former judge James David Santini. Towell ran for the U.S. Senate in 1976 against incumbent Democrat Howard Cannon, but lost by an overwhelming margin. Afterwards, he resumed the real estate business.