William Arthur Winstead (January 6, 1904 – March 14, 1995) was a farmer and politician, elected as

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the 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 Article One of th ...

from Mississippi's 5th and 4th congressional districts, serving from 1943 to 1965. He surprisingly lost the 1964 election by a substantial margin, when his Republican opponent,

Prentiss Walker Prentiss Lafayette Walker (August 23, 1917 – June 5, 1998) was an American farmer, businessman, and politician from Mississippi. A staunch segregationist, in 1964 he became the first Republican to be elected to the United States House of Re ...

, benefited from voters supporting

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

in his presidential campaign in the state.

Early life and education

Born near

Philadelphia, Mississippi Philadelphia is a city in and the county seat of Neshoba County, Mississippi, Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 7,118 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Philadelphia is municipal corporation, i ...

, Winstead attended the public schools, Clarke Memorial College in

Newton, Mississippi Newton is a city in Newton County, Mississippi. The population was 3,195 in the 2020 census. History The Battle of Newton's Station was fought here on April 24, 1863 during the famous Grierson's Raid by the Union Army cavalry regiments in a ...

; and the

University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the old ...

. He graduated in 1931 from the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bac ...

, then known as Mississippi Southern College, at

Hattiesburg Hattiesburg is a city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, located primarily in Forrest County (where it is the county seat and most populous city) and extending west into Lamar County. The city population was 48,730 in 2020, making it the 5th m ...

. Winstead was a farmer. In his first elected office, he became the superintendent of education in his native

Neshoba County Neshoba County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 29,087. Its county seat is Philadelphia. The county is known for the Neshoba County Fair and harness horse r ...

, serving from 1935 to 1942.

Political career

Winstead 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 Seventy-eighth and to the ten succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1965). Like nearly all other Mississippi Democrats, he was an ardent

segregationist Racial segregation is the separation of people into racial or other ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, such as schools and hospitals by peopl ...

and signed the

Southern Manifesto The Declaration of Constitutional Principles (known informally as the Southern Manifesto) was a document written in February and March 1956, during the 84th United States Congress, in opposition to racial integration of public places. The manife ...

after the United States Supreme Court ruled in ''

Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the ...

'' (1954) that segregated schools were unconstitutional. Having won the Democratic Party primary in what was essentially a one-party state since the state constitution's effective

disfranchisement Disfranchisement, also disenfranchisement (which has become more common since 1982) or voter disqualification, is the restriction of suffrage (the right to vote) of a person or group of people, or a practice that has the effect of preventing someo ...

of blacks in 1890, Winstead was unopposed in his first bid for Congress. With its backing at that time almost entirely African-American, the Republican Party had become comatose after disfranchisement of almost all of its base and most of its membership. Democratic nomination subsequently became

tantamount to election A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing h ...

, thus, Winstead faced an opponent once during his ten successful campaigns. However, in 1964, Winstead was defeated by Republican challenger

by a shocking 11-point margin.Our Campaigns
Arthur Winstead
/ref> Winstead was swept out in large part from the district and state swinging dramatically to support

's presidential bid. Goldwater carried over half of Mississippi's counties by over 90 percent of the vote.

Return to private life

Winstead resumed agricultural pursuits. He later became an automobile dealer. From 1968 to 1971, he was appointed as the commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Public Welfare under

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 ...

John Bell Williams John Bell Williams (December 4, 1918 – March 25, 1983) was an American Democratic politician who represented Mississippi in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1968 and served as the 55th governor of Mississippi from 1968 to 1972. ...

, one of his former U.S. House colleagues. Winstead died at the age of ninety-one in

. He is interred there at

Cedar Lawn Cemetery Cedar Lawn Cemetery is a Victorian rural cemetery in Paterson, New Jersey. Cedar Lawn Cemetery officially opened in September 1867, and recorded its first burial on September 27, 1867. Location Cedar Lawn is located on a multi-acre plot bord ...

References

1904 births 1995 deaths People from Philadelphia, Mississippi Businesspeople from Mississippi Farmers from Mississippi Educators from Mississippi Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi 20th-century American businesspeople University of Alabama alumni University of Southern Mississippi alumni Signatories of the Southern Manifesto 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives {{Mississippi-politician-stub