Herbert Eugene Harris II (April 14, 1926 – December 24, 2014) was a Democratic member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. He served three consecutive terms from 1975 to 1981. His district included part of

Fairfax County Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. With a population of 1,150,309 as of the 2020 census, it is the most populous county in Virginia, the most populous jurisdiction in the Washington ...

Early life

Born in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, Harris attended St. Francis Xavier Elementary School, Kansas City from 1930 to 1939. He graduated from

Rockhurst High School Rockhurst High School is a private, Jesuit, all-boys preparatory school founded in 1910 along with Rockhurst College in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. It moved away from the College in 1962 to a campus on State Line Road in Kansas City. ...

, Kansas City, 1943. He attended

Missouri Valley College Missouri Valley College is a private college that is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Marshall, Missouri, United States. The college was founded in 1889 and supports 40 academic majors and an enrollment close to 1,500 ...

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

, from 1944 to 1945, and

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

from 1945 to 1946. He earned a B.A. from

Rockhurst College Rockhurst University is a private Jesuit university in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1910 as Rockhurst College, Rockhurst University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It enrolled 2,980 students in 2019. History In 1909, Fr. ...

in 1948 and a J.D. from

Georgetown University Law School Georgetown University Law Center is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment, with over ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, 1951. He was admitted to the Missouri and District of Columbia bars in 1951 and commenced practice in Kansas City. He moved to the Washington, D.C., area in 1951. He is the cofounder, vice president, and general counsel of the international trade consultants firm of Warner & Harris, Inc. He served on the

Fairfax County, Virginia Fairfax County, officially the County of Fairfax, is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. With a population of 1,150,309 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most p ...

, Board of Supervisors from 1968 to 1974. He served as member of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority from 1968 to 1974. He served as vice-chairman of the

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA ), commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional public transit agency that operates transit services in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA provides rapid transit servic ...

from 1970 to 1974.

Congress

Harris was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the 94th Congress in 1974, defeating incumbent Rep. Stanford E. Parris. He was re-elected to the 95th and 96th Congresses, serving January 3, 1975 to January 3, 1981, overall. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1980 to the 97th Congress, defeated by Stanford E. Parris, who regained his former congressional seat. In 1982, Harris attempted a comeback, but lost 48.6%-49.7%. Harris offered sympathy when Stanford E. Parris died in 2010.

Electoral history

Personal life

He resumed the practice of law with the firm of Harris & Berg in

He was a resident of

Mount Vernon, Virginia Mount Vernon is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 12,914 at the 2020 census. Primarily due to its historical significance and natural recreation and beauty ...

. Harris died on December 24, 2014, at his house in

, aged 88. While in Congress, he was a key proponent for establishing the

Quantico National Cemetery Quantico National Cemetery is a national cemetery in Triangle, Virginia for veterans who served in the United States Armed Forces. Adjacent to and originally part of Marine Corps Base Quantico, it was established as a national cemetery in 1983 wi ...

. He was interred there with his wife, Nancy ''Fodell'' Harris.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Herbert Eugene, Ii 1926 births Lawyers from Kansas City, Missouri People from Mount Vernon, Virginia 2014 deaths Burials at Quantico National Cemetery Rockhurst University alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni Politicians from Kansas City, Missouri Members of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia 20th-century American lawyers Members of Congress who became lobbyists 20th-century Virginia politicians 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives