Richard Fielding Harless (August 6, 1905 - November 24, 1970) was a 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 Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

.

Born in Kelsey, Texas

Kelsey, Texas

Kelsey is an unincorporated area in Upshur County, Texas, United States that was the longest-lasting settlement founded by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the state. Now a ghost town, it has been called the "mother colony" of Latter-day Saint colonies in...

, Harless moved to Thatcher, Arizona

Thatcher, Arizona

Thatcher is a town in Graham County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 4,865. It is part of the Safford Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Thatcher is located at ....

, in 1917 and attended the grade and high schools.
He graduated from University of Arizona

University of Arizona

The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...

 in 1928.
He taught school at Marana, Arizona

Marana, Arizona

Marana is a town in Pima County, Arizona, located northwest of Tucson, with a small portion in Pinal County. According to the 2010 census, the population of the town is 34,961...

 from 1928 to 1930.
He graduated from the law school of the University of Arizona in 1933.
He was admitted to the bar

Admission to the bar in the United States

In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...

 the same year and commenced practice in Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...

.
In Phoenix, Harless served as Assistant City Attorney and in 1936 was elected Assistant Attorney General of Arizona. From 1938-1942, Harless served as Maricopa County

Maricopa County, Arizona

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*73.0% White*5.0% Black*2.1% Native American*3.5% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.5% Two or more races*12.7% Other races*29.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

 Attorney. He was married to Meredith Howard Harless

Meredith Howard Harless

Meredith Howard Harless was a performer and Miss America contestant who earned fame with her twin sister, Virginia, at the Miss Tulsa beauty pageant in 1927 when they were both elected to win the contest. A winning coin flip earned Meredith a trip to the Miss America pageant of 1928 where she...

 a writer and radio personality.

Harless was elected as a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 to the Seventy-eighth

78th United States Congress

The Seventy-eighth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1943 to January 3, 1945, during the last two years...

, Seventy-ninth

79th United States Congress

The Seventy-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1945 to January 3, 1947, during the last months of...

, and Eightieth

80th United States Congress

The Eightieth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1947 to January 3, 1949, during the third and fourth...

 Congresses (January 3, 1943-January 3, 1949). He was one of the main sponsors of the Indian Voting Rights Act of 1947.

Harless did not seek renomination in 1948 but was unsuccessful for the gubernatorial nomination.
He was an unsuccessful for the Democratic nomination in 1954 for the Eighty-fourth

84th United States Congress

The Eighty-fourth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1955 to January 3, 1957, during the third and...

 Congress.
He served as Democratic nominee in 1960 for the Eighty-seventh

87th United States Congress

-House of Representatives :-Senate:* President: Richard Nixon , until January 20, 1961** Lyndon Johnson , from January 20, 1961* President pro tempore: Carl Hayden -House of Representatives:...

 Congress.
He resumed the practice of law.
He died in Phoenix, Arizona, November 24, 1970.
He was interred in Greenwood Memorial Park.