Daniel Kerr was a two-term Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 U.S. Representative

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 from Iowa's 5th congressional district

Iowa's 5th congressional district

Iowa's 5th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers most of Western Iowa and includes the cities of Council Bluffs and Sioux City...

 in the 1880s, who later switched parties.

Born near Dalry, Ayrshire, Scotland, Kerr emigrated to the United States with his parents, settling in Madison County, Illinois

Madison County, Illinois

Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Madison County is part of the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metro Area. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 269,282, which is an increase of 4.0% from 258,941 in 2000. The county seat is Edwardsville, home to...

, in 1841.
He attended the common schools. Kerr graduated from McKendree College

McKendree College

McKendree University, formerly known as McKendree College, is a private liberal arts college located in Lebanon, Illinois. The area is a part of the Metro-East region of Greater St. Louis. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college in Illinois...

 in 1858. After studying law, he was admitted to the bar in 1862 and commenced practice in Edwardsville, Illinois

Edwardsville, Illinois

Edwardsville is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 24,293. It is the county seat of Madison County and is the third oldest city in the State of Illinois. The city was named in honor of Ninian Edwards, then Governor of the Illinois...

.

He enlisted in the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 on August 12, 1862.
He was promoted to Second Lieutenant, Company G, 117th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, in 1863 and to First Lieutenant in 1864.

He served as member of the Illinois House of Representatives

Illinois House of Representatives

The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...

 in 1868, serving until 1870.
In 1870 he moved to Grundy Center, Iowa

Grundy Center, Iowa

Grundy Center is a city in Grundy County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,706 at the 2010 census a 4.2% increase from 2,596 at the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population was 2,524 in 2009...

, where he continued to practice law, and also farmed.
He was a school director in 1875.

Kerr was elected mayor of Grundy Center in 1877.
He was elected to the Iowa House of Representatives

Iowa House of Representatives

The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 100 members of the House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state with populations of approximately 29,750 for each constituency...

 in 1883.

In 1886, Kerr was elected as a Republican to the Fiftieth Congress, unseating incumbent Democrat Benjamin T. Frederick

Benjamin T. Frederick

Benjamin Todd Frederick was a miner, businessman, real estate agent, and a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Iowa's 5th congressional district....

. After re-election in 1888 and service in the Fifty-first Congress, he declined to run for a third term in 1890. In all, he served in Congress from March 4, 1887 to March 3, 1891. After leaving Congress, Kerr resumed the practice of law.

Kerr had served as a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1888 and 1896. In 1896 he indicated that he supported the free coinage of silver, a position closer to Democratic presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan

William Jennings Bryan

William Jennings Bryan was an American politician in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. He was a dominant force in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, standing three times as its candidate for President of the United States...

 than to his own party's candidate, William McKinley

William McKinley

William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...

. Soon thereafter he switched parties, becoming a Democrat.

He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for election in 1900 to his former seat in Congress.

He moved to Pasadena, California

Pasadena, California

Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...

, in 1909 and lived there until 1916, when he returned to Grundy Center, where he died on October 8, 1916. He was interred in Rose Hill Cemetery.