Senator Daniel Jackson Evans

Daniel Jackson Evans served as a Senator from Washington in the United States Congress from 1983 to 1989. A member of the Republican Party, Daniel Jackson Evans contributed to the legislative process during 1 term in office.

Daniel Jackson Evans’s service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history. As a member of the Senate, Daniel Jackson Evans participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of constituents.

Daniel Jackson “Dan” Evans Sr. (October 16, 1925 – September 20, 2024) was an American politician from the state of Washington. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives representing Washington’s 43rd legislative district from 1957 to 1965, the 16th Governor of Washington from 1965 to 1977, and later served in the United States Senate from 1983 to 1989. He was also the second President of Evergreen State College from 1977 to 1983 before he served in the U.S. Senate. Following his service in the United States Navy, Evans was elected to the Washington House of Representatives in 1956. He then served as Republican leader of the House before being elected governor in 1964. He was reelected two times more in 1968 and in 1972. Described as a moderate Republican, particularly on social and environmental issues, Evans supported Nelson Rockefeller for the Republican nomination for president in 1968 and refused to endorse Richard Nixon, despite giving the keynote address at that year’s Republican National Convention. Evans was considered a potential candidate for vice president of the United States during his time as governor, but was never chosen. In 1983, he was appointed to the United States Senate following the death of Henry M. Jackson, and was elected in a special election in November and served until 1989, declining to run again. At the time of his death, he was the oldest living former U.S. senator and the second-oldest living former American governor, the same honorary titles that Fritz Hollings (nickname of Ernest F. Hollings) from South Carolina held at the time of his death in April 2019.