Marshall Joyner Parker (April 25, 1922 – November 15, 2008) was a
Republican politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
from the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
.
Background
Parker was born in
Seaboard in
Northampton County in northeastern
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, to Carl Putnam Parker and Bertha Helen Joyner. Parker graduated in 1944 from the
University of North Carolina
The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...
at
Chapel Hill. In his first year of college, Parker received the Freshmen Athlete of the Year Award. Later, he lettered in boxing and football. Immediately following graduation, he entered the
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
and served 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 ...
.
Political career
After military service, Parker moved briefly to
Danville,
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 ...
, and then to
Seneca
Seneca may refer to:
People, fictional characters and language
* Seneca (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname
:
:* Seneca the Elder (c. 54 BC – c. AD 39), a Roman rhetorician, writer and father ...
, South Carolina. His political career began in
Oconee County, South Carolina, where he served on the Seneca City Council and the Oconee County School Board. He was thereafter 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
South Carolina State Senate
The South Carolina State Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives. It consists of 46 senators elected from single member districts for four-year terms at t ...
, having represented Oconee County, which includes his hometown of Seneca. He remained in the state Senate from 1957 to 1967, in which capacity he was instrumental in the creation of his state's technical education system. He owned and operated Oconee Daries, a milk processing plant, which serviced the Golden Corner of South Carolina.
In 1966, Parker
switched Switched may refer to:
* Switched (band)
Switched (previously depicted as Sw1tched) was an American nu metal band from Cleveland, Ohio.
History
Forming in 1999 as Sw1tch, the band played shows around Ohio and released a demo entitled ''Fu ...
to
Republican affiliation to run for the
U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
. The other Senate seat from South Carolina was held at the time by the Democrat-turned-Republican
Strom Thurmond
James Strom Thurmond Sr. (December 5, 1902 – June 26, 2003) was an American politician who represented South Carolina in the United States Senate from 1954 to 2003. Before his 49 years as a senator, he served as the 103rd governor of South ...
, who had been elected as an
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
write-in
A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...
candidate in 1954 and as a Democrat in 1960 but switched to the GOP in 1964 to support
Barry M. Goldwater for the presidency. Parker did not challenge Thurmond in the Republican primary but instead attempted in a
special election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections.
A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...
for a two-year term to succeed former senator
Olin D. Johnston, who died in office in 1965. Meanwhile,
Governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Donald S. Russell appointed himself to the Johnston seat. However, Russell was unseated in the 1966 Democratic primary for the Senate by former governor
Fritz Hollings
Ernest Frederick "Fritz" Hollings (January 1, 1922April 6, 2019) was an American politician from the U.S. state of South Carolina. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as a member of the South Carolina Ho ...
. Thereafter in the general election, Hollings narrowly defeated the Republican convert Marshall Parker.
Two years later in 1968, when Senator Hollings sought a full six-year term, he defeated Parker by a comfortable margin even though the Republican presidential nominee,
Richard M. Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 36th vice president under P ...
, had narrowly won the
electoral votes of South Carolina against
American Independent Party
The American Independent Party (AIP) is an American political party that was established in 1967. The American Independent Party is best known for its nomination of Democratic then-former Governor George Wallace of Alabama, who carried five s ...
nominee
George C. Wallace
George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who was the 45th and longest-serving governor of Alabama (1963–1967; 1971–1979; 1983–1987), and the longest-serving governor from the Democra ...
of
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
and Democratic presidential nominee
Vice President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
Hubert H. Humphrey of
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
.
Despite his twin defeats by Hollings for the U.S. Senate, Parker remained committed to the newly invigorated South Carolina Republican Party as well as the national GOP. He ran for Congress from
South Carolina's 3rd congressional district
South Carolina's 3rd congressional district is a congressional district in western South Carolina bordering both Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and North Carolina. It includes all of Abbeville County, South Carolina, Abbeville, Anderson County, ...
but was defeated. In later years, he served in the senior leadership at the
Small Business Administration
The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and str ...
under Presidents Nixon and
Ronald W. Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party and became an important figure in ...
.
Later years
Marshall Parker retired to his Oconee County farm, where he raised beef cattle. He was a member of both the
Veterans of Foreign Wars
The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States Armed Forces, United States war veterans who fought in wars, Military campaign, campaig ...
and the
American Legion
The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...
and a former member of the Seneca Lions, Sertoma, and
Rotary International
Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and p ...
clubs. He was a former trustee and a past president of the Capital Foundation of
Tri-County Technical College in
Pendleton, South Carolina. The auditorium there is named in his honor.
Parker was an active
United Methodist
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...
. He and his wife of sixty-five years, Martha Parker, had four daughters, nine grandchildren, and one great-grandchild at the time of his death. He died at the age of eighty-six at Oconee Medical Center in Seneca, South Carolina, after experiencing a year of declining health.
See also
*
References
External links
The Political Graveyard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Marshall
1922 births
2008 deaths
People from Seaboard, North Carolina
People from Seneca, South Carolina
Businesspeople from South Carolina
Farmers from South Carolina
Military personnel from North Carolina
School board members in South Carolina
South Carolina Democrats
South Carolina Republicans
South Carolina state senators
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II
United States Marines
20th-century members of the South Carolina General Assembly
20th-century Methodists
21st-century Methodists
American United Methodists