William M. Colmer

William Meyers Colmer (February 11, 1890 - September 9, 1980) was a Mississippi politician.

Colmer was born in Moss Point, Mississippi, and attended Millsaps College. He served in the military during World War I.

Colmer was elected Jackson County attorney in 1921, becoming district attorney in 1928.

In 1932, Colmer was elected to the House of Representatives as a Democrat from Mississippi's 6th District, located on the Gulf Coast. He was reelected 19 times. His district was renumbered the 5th after the 1960 Census, when Mississippi's declining population cost it a congressional seat.

Originally elected as a supporter of the New Deal, Colmer became increasingly conservative as the years passed, especially as the Democrats became more friendly towards civil rights. After the Brown v. Board of Education decision, Colmer helped to get Southern congressmen to sign the Southern Manifesto. He endorsed Richard Nixon for president in 1960, 1968 and 1972, and Barry Goldwater in 1964. Despite his strong opposition to racial integration, he served as the chairman of the Rules Committee from 1967 to 1973.

Colmer did not run for reelection in 1972. He endorsed his administrative assistant, Trent Lott, as his successor, even though Lott ran as a Republican. Colmer served longer in either house of Congress than anyone in Mississippi's history except Jamie Whitten, who served 54 years in Congress.

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Robert S. Hall	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Mississippi's 6th congressional district 1933-1963	District eliminated after Census 1960
Preceded by W. Arthur Winstead	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Mississippi's 5th congressional district 1963-1973	Succeeded by Trent Lott

Reference

• William M. Colmer at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

Persondata
Name	Colmer, William M.
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Date of birth	February 11, 1890
Place of birth
Date of death	September 9, 1980
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