# David H. Gambrell

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American politician (1929–2021)

"Senator Gambrell" redirects here. For the South Carolina state senate member, see [Michael Gambrell](/source/Michael_Gambrell).

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David H. Gambrell Gambrell in 1972, while serving. United States Senator from Georgia In office February 1, 1971 – November 7, 1972 Appointed by Jimmy Carter Preceded by Richard Russell Jr. Succeeded by Sam Nunn Chair of the Georgia Democratic Party In office 1970–1971 Preceded by James H. Gray Sr. Succeeded by Charles Kirbo Personal details Born David Henry Gambrell (1929-12-20)December 20, 1929 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Died May 6, 2021(2021-05-06) (aged 91) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Party Democratic Spouses Luck Flanders ​ ​ (m. 1953; died 2015)​ Jeanne Martin ​ (m. 2016)​ Children 4 Alma mater Davidson College Harvard Law School Military service Allegiance United States Branch/service United States Army Unit Reserves

**David Henry Gambrell** (December 20, 1929 – May 6, 2021) was an American attorney and politician from the U.S. state of [Georgia](/source/Georgia_(U.S._state)) who served as the chairman of the [Georgia Democratic Party](/source/Democratic_Party_of_Georgia) in the early 1970s and served in the [United States Senate](/source/United_States_Senate) from 1971 to 1972.[1]

## Education and legal career

Gambrell was born in [Atlanta, Georgia](/source/Atlanta), on December 20, 1929, the son of Kathleen (Hagood) and Smythe Gambrell.[2] He graduated from [Davidson College](/source/Davidson_College) in 1949, and received his JD, with honors, from [Harvard Law School](/source/Harvard_Law_School) in 1952. He served in the [reserves](/source/United_States_Army_Reserve) of the [United States Army](/source/United_States_Army). After serving as a Teaching Fellow at Harvard and then as an associate and partner at the [King & Spalding](/source/King_%26_Spalding) law firm in Atlanta, Gambrell founded Gambrell & Stolz, LLP in 1963. He served as president of the Atlanta Bar Association from 1965 to 1966, and as president of the [State Bar of Georgia](/source/State_Bar_of_Georgia) from 1967 to 1968. He also served in the [American Bar Association](/source/American_Bar_Association) House of Delegates, on the Board of Editors of the *[ABA Journal](/source/ABA_Journal)*, and as Director of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association. In 2002, he received the State Bar of Georgia's Distinguished Service Award, and the Atlanta Bar Association, in 2007, honored him with their Leadership Award.

## Political career

Gambrell went on to take part in state politics, serving as chairman of the [Georgia Democratic Party](/source/Georgia_Democratic_Party) from 1970 to 1971. In 1971, upon the death of U.S. Senate member [Richard Russell Jr.](/source/Richard_Russell_Jr.), [Governor of Georgia](/source/Governor_of_Georgia) [Jimmy Carter](/source/Jimmy_Carter) appointed Gambrell to the [United States Senate](/source/United_States_Senate) to finish Russell's term, where he served during the years 1971 and 1972. While in the U.S. Senate he served as a member of the Banking Committee, Aeronautics and Space Committee, and Senate Select Committee on Small Business. Gambrell, a moderate, was defeated in the Democratic primary runoff in [1972](/source/1972_United_States_Senate_elections_in_Georgia) by the more conservative [Sam Nunn](/source/Sam_Nunn), who went on to serve in the Senate for the next twenty-four years. Gambrell sought the Democratic nomination for [Governor of Georgia](/source/Governor_of_Georgia) in [1974](/source/1974_Georgia_gubernatorial_election), but fared badly, finishing behind [Lester Maddox](/source/Lester_Maddox), [George Busbee](/source/George_Busbee) (the eventual winner), and [Bert Lance](/source/Bert_Lance).

## Other activities

Gambrell served in a number of public, business and civic roles, including the Directorships of three publicly held corporations, the Visiting Committees of Davidson College, Harvard Law School, [Emory University](/source/Emory_University) and the Board of Directors of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. He also served as Chairman of the Governor's Committee on Post-Secondary Education, as chairman of the Drafting Committee for the Education Article of the [Constitution of Georgia](/source/Constitution_of_Georgia_(U.S._state)), as a member on the Board of Curators of the [Georgia Historical Society](/source/Georgia_Historical_Society) and as a trustee of the Lawyers Foundation of Georgia. He retired as a director of American Software, Inc. and was a trustee of the Georgia Legal History Foundation.

## Personal life

Gambrell was married to [Luck Flanders Gambrell](/source/Luck_Flanders_Gambrell). They had four children. She was a philanthropist in her hometown of [Swainsboro, Georgia](/source/Swainsboro%2C_Georgia), having donated 190 acres (77 ha) of land to establish [East Georgia State College](/source/East_Georgia_State_College) in 1971; the building housing the college's library bears her name to honor this gift. Luck died on June 29, 2015.[3] Gambrell died in [Atlanta](/source/Atlanta) on May 6, 2021, after a period of declining health, age 91.[4]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Lawrence Kestenbaum. ["Index to Politicians: Gamblin to Garchow"](http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/gambrell-garcelon.html). The Political Graveyard. Retrieved May 10, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Congress, United States (1970). [*Official Congressional Directory: 91st Congress, Second Session*](https://books.google.com/books?id=8bXQ1Z6-8wMC&q=David+Henry+Gambrell+1929&pg=PA39). Columbia University Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780231033657](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780231033657).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Luck Gambrell Obituary"](http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/atlanta/obituary.aspx?pid=175202543). Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved January 27, 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Obit"](https://www.dignitymemorial.com/en-ca/obituaries/atlanta-ga/david-gambrell-10184035). *www.dignitymemorial.com*. Retrieved May 10, 2021.

## External links

- United States Congress. ["David H. Gambrell (id: G000034)"](http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=G000034). *[Biographical Directory of the United States Congress](/source/Biographical_Directory_of_the_United_States_Congress)*.

U.S. Senate Preceded by Richard Russell Jr. U.S. senator (Class 2) from Georgia 1971–1972 Served alongside: Herman Talmadge Succeeded by Sam Nunn

v t e United States senators from Georgia Class 2 Few Jackson Walton Tattnall Baldwin Jones Crawford Bulloch Bibb Troup Forsyth Walker Ware Cobb Prince Troup King Lumpkin Berrien Charlton Toombs H. Miller Norwood B. Hill Barrow A. Colquitt Walsh Bacon West Hardwick Harris Cohen Russell Gambrell Nunn Cleland Chambliss Perdue Ossoff Class 3 Gunn Jackson Milledge Tait Elliott Berrien Forsyth Cuthbert W. Colquitt Johnson Dawson Iverson J. Hill Gordon Brown Gordon Clay Terrell Smith Watson Felton George Talmadge Mattingly Fowler Coverdell Z. Miller Isakson Loeffler Warnock

v t e Democratic Party of Georgia Chairs Thomas Hardeman Jr. (1872) L. N. Trammell (1880) Charles F. Clay (1883–) B. H. Bigham (1886) Hoke Smith (1888) William Yates Atkinson (1890–1892) Allen Fort (1892–1894) Alexander Stephens Clay (1894–1898) Fleming W. Dubignon (1898–1900) E. T. Brown (1902–1904) E. J. Yeomans (1904–1906) Alexander Lawton Miller (1906–1908) Hewlett A. Hall (1908–1909) Charles R. Pendleton (1909–1910) W. C. Wright (1910–1912) William J. Harris (1912–1913) William S. West (1913–1914) E. J. Reagan (1914–1916) John James Flynt Sr. (1916–1920) William Jerome Vereen (1920–1921) G. E. Maddox 1925–30 Lawrence S. Camp 1930–32 Hugh Howell (c. 1935–1937) Charles S. Reid 1937 Jim L. Gillis 1939 William Y. Atkinson Jr. 1942 J. Lon Duckworth (1943–1946) James S. Peters (1948–1954) John Sammons Bell (1954–1960) J. B. Fuqua (1962–1966) James Gray (1966–1970) David H. Gambrell (1970–1972) Charles Kirbo (1972–1974) Marge Thurman (1974–1982) Al Holloway (Interim Chairman, 1982) Bert Lance (1982–1986) John Henry Anderson (1986–1990) Ed Sims (1990–1994) John Blackmon (1994–1998) David Worley (1998–2001) Calvin Smyre (2001–2004) Bobby Kahn (2004–2007) Jane Kidd (2007–2010) Mike Berlon (2011–2013) Nikema Williams (acting, 2013) DuBose Porter (2013–2019) Nikema Williams (2019–2025) Matthew Wilson (2025, acting) Charlie Bailey (2025–present) House Leaders George Busbee Clarence Vaughn Al Burruss Larry Walker Jr. Jimmy Skipper DuBose Porter Stacey Abrams Bob Trammell James Beverly Carolyn Hugley Senate Leaders John R. Riley Thomas F. Allgood Charles Walker Michael Meyer von Bremen Robert Brown Steve Henson Gloria Butler Harold V. Jones II Presidential primaries 2004 2008 2016 2020 Other 1988 Democratic National Convention

Authority control databases International VIAF FAST WorldCat National United States People US Congress Other NARA

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [David H. Gambrell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_H._Gambrell) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_H._Gambrell?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.