Hunter Booker Andrews (May 28, 1921 – January 13, 2005) was a long-serving Democratic member of the

Senate of Virginia The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Vir ...

from

Hampton, Virginia Hampton is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 137,148 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, seve ...

. He served as Senate Majority leader of the Senate from 1980 until his defeat in 1995.

Early life and career

A native and lifelong resident of Hampton, Andrews was born on May 28, 1921. He attended public schools of his hometown and was a 1938 graduate of Hampton High School. In 1942, he graduated from the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (abbreviated as W&M) is a public university, public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1693 under a royal charter issued by King William III of England, William III and Queen ...

, and subsequently served as an Ensign in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

for four years in the Pacific Theatre during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Andrews was a 1948 graduate of the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

Law School. Returning from school, Andrews practiced law in Hampton. He married Cynthia Bentley Collings.

Political career

Andrews served as Chair of the Hampton School Board, leading the city schools through racial integration at a time when other counties and cities were struggling to stop integration as part of a policy of massive resistance. In 1962, he ran for and was elected to the State Senate from the 31st district. He was reelected to 9 terms in the 28th district and from 1972 until 1996 in the 1st district. He rose to be Majority Leader of the Senate from 1980–1995 and served as Chair of the powerful Senate Finance Committee. According to ''The Washington Post'', "Mr. Andrews was the longest-serving senator in the state's history, and when the Democrats controlled the 40-member Senate, he was also its majority leader. He wielded enormous clout during the three decades when the Democrats controlled every branch of the state's government, and his power often matched that of the nine governors under whom he served." For many years, Andrews served on the Board of Visitors of the College of William & Mary. He was defeated for reelection in 1995, and returned to the practice of law in Hampton until his retirement in 2003. In 1995 the Virginia Bar Association awarded him its Distinguished Service Award."VBA honors Stolle, Warner, life members' Virginia Lawyers Weekly (July 30, 2007)

Death and memorials

Andrews died of a heart attack at his home on January 13, 2005. His funeral was held at St. John's Episcopal Church in Hampton and burial was in the church cemetery. Hunter B. Andrews Elementary School in Hampton, Virginia is named for the senator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andrews, Hunter B. 1921 births 2005 deaths Democratic Party Virginia state senators Politicians from Hampton, Virginia College of William & Mary alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni 20th-century American Episcopalians Hampton High School (Virginia) alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II 20th-century members of the Virginia General Assembly