Richard Howard Stallings (born October 7, 1940 in Ogden, Utah) represented the Idaho Second District in the House of Representatives from 1985 to 1993. Stallings also served in several other state and local political offices over the course of a 22-year political career.
Stallings earned degrees from Weber State College, Utah State University and Colorado College. Beginning in 1969 Stallings taught history at Ricks College (now Brigham Young University-Idaho) in Rexburg, Idaho.
Idaho Democrats nominated Stallings to challenge Rep. George V. Hansen in 1982, but he lost in the general election. In 1984, after Hansen was censured by the House of Representatives, Stallings defeated him in a hotly contested race by fewer than 200 votes. Despite representing a heavily Republican district, Stallings won his subsequent reelection campaigns by comfortable margins.
A conservative Democrat, Stallings unexpectedly won three votes for the presidential nomination from pro-life delegates to the 1988 Democratic National Convention.
Stallings was the Democratic nominee for the United States Senate in Idaho in 1992 but lost to Republican Dirk Kempthorne. In 1993 he was appointed United States Nuclear Waste Negotiator by President Bill Clinton. He served in that capacity until the office was eliminated in early 1995.
In 1998 Stallings attempted to win his old House seat back but was defeated by Mike Simpson. After leaving Congress, Stallings later served as executive director of the Pocatello Neighborhood Housing Services and later on the Pocatello, Idaho, City Council.
In 2005 Stallings won both election as chairman of the Idaho Democratic Party and reelection to the Pocatello City Council. Stallings was reelected state Democratic chair in 2007. He resigned from both posts on December 20, 2007.
Famous quotes containing the words richard and/or stallings:
“Awop-bop-a-loo-mop alop-bam-boom!”
—Little Richard (b. 1932)
“That poor little thing was a good woman, Judge. But she just sort of let life get the upper hand. She was born here and she wanted to be buried here. I promised her on her deathbed she’d have a funeral in a church with flowers. And the sun streamin’ through a pretty window on her coffin. And a hearse with plumes and some hacks. And a preacher to read the Bible. And folks there in church to pray for her soul.”
—Laurence Stallings (1804–1968)