Representative Edward Maurice Mezvinsky

Edward Maurice Mezvinsky (born January 17, 1937) is an American politician and lawyer from Iowa who served as a Representative from Iowa in the United States Congress from 1973 to 1977. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Iowa’s 1st congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for two terms, contributing to the legislative process during a significant period in American history. A former U.S. representative and later a convicted felon, he became a notable figure in both state and national politics over several decades.

Mezvinsky was born in Ames, Iowa, and grew up there, where he played high school football and became active in local affairs. He was raised in a Jewish family, a background that would later place him among the list of Jewish members of the United States Congress. His early life in Ames helped shape his interest in public service and politics, and he pursued higher education with the goal of entering the legal profession and, ultimately, elective office.

After completing his undergraduate studies, Mezvinsky attended the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, from which he graduated in 1965. His legal education provided the foundation for his career as a lawyer and his subsequent work in public office. Following law school, he returned to the Midwest, where he practiced law and became increasingly involved in Democratic Party politics, positioning himself for a run for state and then federal office.

Mezvinsky’s formal political career began in the Iowa Legislature, to which he was elected in 1968. As a state legislator, he gained experience in lawmaking and constituent service, building a profile within the Democratic Party. In 1970 he made his first bid for Congress but was unsuccessful. Undeterred, he ran again in 1972 and was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa’s 1st congressional district. He was re-elected in 1974, serving two terms in Congress from 1973 to 1977. During his tenure in the House of Representatives, Mezvinsky participated in the democratic process at the federal level and represented the interests of his Iowa constituents during a turbulent era that included the end of the Vietnam War and the aftermath of the Watergate scandal.

After leaving Congress in 1977, Mezvinsky remained active in public life and Democratic politics. In the 1980s he made several unsuccessful attempts to win a seat in the United States Senate, seeking to return to national office. Alongside his political efforts, he continued to work as a lawyer and public figure, appearing in various civic and political forums and maintaining a presence in national Democratic circles.

Mezvinsky’s later life was marked by serious legal and financial troubles. In 2001 he was convicted in federal court on 31 charges of felony fraud, stemming from a series of schemes that included his involvement in what was widely reported as Nigerian “black money” and other advance-fee frauds. He was sentenced to prison and served five years in federal custody. His case drew national media attention and was frequently cited in discussions of financial fraud and white-collar crime.

In his personal life, Mezvinsky’s family connections later intersected with another prominent American political family. In 2010 he became the father-in-law of Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, when his son Marc Mezvinsky married Chelsea Clinton. This marriage linked Mezvinsky to one of the most visible families in contemporary American politics and further extended his public profile beyond his own electoral and legal history.