View source for Mo Udall

{{Short description|American politician (1922–1998)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Mo Udall
| image               = Representative Mo Udall Listens (cropped).png
| caption             = Udall in 1976
| office              = Chair of the [[United States House Committee on Natural Resources|House Interior Committee]]
| term_start          = January 3, 1977
| term_end            = May 4, 1991
| predecessor         = [[James A. Haley]]
| successor           = [[George Miller (California politician)|George Miller]]
| state1              = [[Arizona]]
| district1           = {{ushr|AZ|2|2nd}}
| term_start1         = May 2, 1961
| term_end1           = May 4, 1991
| predecessor1        = [[Stewart Udall]]
| successor1          = [[Ed Pastor]]
| birth_name          = Morris King Udall
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1922|6|15}}
| birth_place         = [[St. Johns, Arizona]], U.S.
| death_date          = {{death date and age|1998|12|12|1922|6|15}}
| death_place         = Washington, D.C., U.S.
| party               = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| spouse              = {{Unbulleted list|{{Marriage|Patricia Emery|1949|1966|end=div}}|{{Marriage|Ella Royston|1968|1988|end=died}}|{{Marriage|Norma Gilbert|1989|}}}}
| children            = 5, including [[Mark Udall|Mark]]
| alma_mater          = [[University of Arizona]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br>[[University of Denver]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]])
| branch              = [[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Forces]]
| serviceyears        = 1942–1946
| rank                = [[Captain (United States O-3)|Captain]]
| battles             = [[World War II]]
* [[Asiatic-Pacific Theater]]
| module              = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=Rep. Mo Udall Speaks on The Humane City.ogg|title=Mo Udall's voice|type=speech|description=Mo Udall on the possible end of [[suburbanization]]<br/>Recorded September 10, 1975}}
}}

'''Morris King Udall''' (June 15, 1922 – December 12, 1998) was an American attorney and [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] politician who served as a [[U.S. representative]] from [[Arizona]] from May 2, 1961, to May 4, 1991. He was a leading contender for the [[Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1976|1976 Democratic presidential nomination]], but ultimately lost to eventual president, [[Jimmy Carter]]. Udall was noted by many for his independent and [[Modern liberalism in the United States|liberal]] views.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu">[http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/mobio.html "Biographical Information,"] on the [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/ Morris K. Udall website section – MS 325 –] of the [[University of Arizona]] Library Manuscript Collection, retrieved July 23, 2018</ref><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon">[[James M. Perry|Perry, James M.]], reporter, ''[[National Observer (United States)|National Observer]],'' [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/fella_htm.html "This Fella from Arizona"], in ''[[Audubon (magazine)|Audubon]],'' November 1981, pp. 64–73, [[National Audubon Society]], as reproduced on the [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/ Morris K. Udall website section – MS 325 –] of the [[University of Arizona]] Library Manuscript Collection, retrieved July 23, 2018</ref><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times">Severo, Richard, [https://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/14/nyregion/morris-k-udall-fiercely-liberal-congressman-dies-at-76.html "Morris K_ Udall, Fiercely Liberal Congressman, Dies at 76,"] December 14, 1998, ''[[New York Times]],'' retrieved July 23, 2018</ref><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post">Pearson, Richard, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/dec98/udall14.htm "Environmental Leader Rep. Mo Udall Dies,"] December 14, 1998, ''[[Washington Post]],'' retrieved July 23, 2018</ref>

In 1961, Udall won a special election to succeed his brother, [[Stewart Udall]], as the congressman for [[Arizona's 2nd congressional district]].  In Congress, Udall became a prominent and popular figure for his independent ways, his leading role in the [[conservation (ethic)|conservation]] and [[environmental protection]] movements, his key role in reforming [[United States Congress|Congress]] and [[campaign finance|political campaigns]], and his pioneering role in opposing the [[Vietnam War]].<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine">Latham, Aaron, [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/presidnt_htm.html "Will Rogers is Running for President,"] December 1974, ''[[New York Magazine]],'' as reproduced on the [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/ Morris K. Udall website section – MS 325 –] of the [[University of Arizona]] Library Manuscript Collection, retrieved July 23, 2018</ref><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

Udall [[1976 Democratic Party presidential primaries|sought the Democratic Party nomination]] in the [[1976 United States presidential election|1976 presidential election]], but was defeated by [[Jimmy Carter]]. He supported [[Ted Kennedy]]'s strong challenge to Carter in the [[1980 Democratic Party presidential primaries|1980 Democratic primary]], and delivered the keynote address at the [[1980 Democratic National Convention]].<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Udall served as chairman of the [[United States House Committee on Natural Resources|House Interior Committee]] from 1977 to 1991. Diagnosed with [[Parkinson's disease]] in 1980, he resigned from Congress in 1991 as the effects of the disease worsened. He died in 1998.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /> His son, [[Mark Udall]], represented [[Colorado]] in the [[United States Senate]] from 2009 to 2015, and his nephew [[Tom Udall]] served as a [[United States Senator]] from [[New Mexico]] from 2009 to 2021.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /> Both also served multiple terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.

== Early life and education ==
Udall was born in 1922 in [[St. Johns, Arizona]], one of six children (''[[New York Times]]'' says three sons, two daughters)<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /> of Louisa (née Lee) and [[Levi Stewart Udall]]. His father was a lawyer who served as Chief Justice of the [[Arizona Supreme Court]] from 1946 to 1960. His mother was a writer keenly interested in Indian life and culture. His father preached the importance of responsible people entering public service.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name=Kaufman2006>{{Citation|title=The Carter years|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jIzooiFd6IoC&pg=PA485 |year=2006|author=Kaufman, Burton Ira|journal=Infobase Publishing|page=485|isbn=978-0816053698|access-date=September 19, 2011}}</ref> Udall and his siblings attended local schools in St. Johns.

At age six in 1928, his right eye was cut by a friend's pocket knife while the friend and he were trying to cut some string; he lost the eye because his family lacked the money to get him prompt treatment. Udall wore a [[glass eye]] for the rest of his life, and he later indicated that the loss of his eye influenced both his personality and his politics.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name=Kaufman2006/>

He described his early rural/small-town life in the desert as harsh and primitive, in a town where "everybody worked."  Noting they had "no tractors," he added, "we had horses and plows."<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

While in high school, despite the lost eye, Udall was a star athlete in basketball, and in [[high school football|football]] as quarterback leading an undefeated team. He also marched in the school band, wrote a political column for the school paper, and took the lead in the school play.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

==Military service==
Udall attempted to enlist in the [[United States Army Air Forces|Army Air Forces]] during [[World War II]], and almost succeeded by covering his glass eye each time he was told to alternate during the eye exam. After he was medically cleared, another potential enlistee complained that he had been medically rejected for flat feet, while Udall had passed with one eye. The examiners retested Udall under closer scrutiny, and he was rejected. Later, medical standards changed and Udall served in the Army.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /> He joined the Army Air Forces as a private in 1942 and later received his commission as an officer. He commanded an [[Military history of African Americans#World War II|all-black squadron]] for two years in [[Louisiana]], an experience of which Udall later said, "That really shaped my life," because he had "fought their fights with them... over local discrimination." Udall later served in the [[South Pacific Ocean|South Pacific]] and achieved the rank of [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]] before being discharged in 1946.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

==Higher education and basketball career==
After the war, Udall completed his bachelor's degree at the [[University of Arizona]], where he was a star [[Arizona Wildcats men's basketball|basketball]] player (team co-captain), President of the Associated Student Government, and a member of [[Sigma Chi]] fraternity.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

For one year following graduation, Udall played professional basketball with the [[Denver Nuggets (1948–50)|Denver Nuggets]] during the 1948–49 [[National Basketball League (United States)|National Basketball League]] season.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /> At the same time, he attended the [[University of Denver]] [[Sturm College of Law|College of Law]]. He completed his studies at the University of Arizona's [[James E. Rogers College of Law|law school]], where he graduated in 1949 with a [[Juris Doctor]] (J.D.) degree.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

===Career statistics===
{{NBL (United States) player statistics legend}}

====NBL====
Source<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/nbl/players/u/udallmo01n.html|title=Mo Udall NBL stats|website=[[Basketball Reference]]|publisher=Sports Reference, LLC|accessdate=19 August 2023}}</ref>

=====Regular season=====
{{NBL (United States) player statistics start}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| [[National Basketball League (United States)|1948–49]]
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Denver Nuggets (1948–1950)|Denver]]
| 57 || 125 || 121 || 171 || .708 || 371 || 6.5
{{s-end}}

==Personality and philosophy==
Udall was a tall (6'5"), [[Abraham Lincoln|Lincolnesque]] figure with a self-deprecating wit and easy manner. Because of his wit, columnist [[James J. Kilpatrick]] deemed him "too funny to be president", which also ended up being the title of his autobiography in the 1980s.<ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

He once said that his physical stature and one eye kept him from ever having a date in high school, and led to his use of self-deprecating humor to survive.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Known for his humor, his irreverent and casual style (particularly his colorful western wear and cowboy boots), and his ethics, Udall was summarized by leading political journalist [[James M. Perry]] as "funny, smart, down-to-earth, honest, sassy, patient."<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

Despite being raised [[Mormon]], his spiritual views changed during his later years. He ceased being active in church by the time he returned from military service. While in college, as he read philosophy and history, Udall abandoned his Mormon faith. In particular, he rejected the cultural view among some Church members of the time that black people were "cursed."<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />{{dead links|date=December 2024}}

==Early career==
In 1949 Udall, with his brother, Stewart, started the law firm of Udall & Udall in [[Tucson, Arizona]], practicing law in Tucson until 1961.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Udall was elected as the [[Pima County]] chief deputy attorney (1950–1952) and county attorney (1953–1954).  In 1954, he failed in a bid to be nominated for a Superior Court judgeship.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

He taught labor law at the University of Arizona law school (1955, 1956).<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /> In 1961 he became vice-president of the [[Arizona Bar Association]]. Udall co-founded the [[Bank of Tucson]], and the [[Catalina Savings and Loan Association]], and in 1960 became president of Tucson's [[YMCA]].<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

== Political career ==
Throughout his early life, Udall dreamed of public office, but—under pressure from his wife—deferred a congressional race opportunity to his older brother, [[Stewart Udall]]. The latter won {{ushr|Arizona|2}} seat in 1954. The younger Udall's hopes for a seat on the Arizona Supreme Court (where their father had served) were dashed when the seat went to his ultra-conservative uncle, [[Jesse Addison Udall]], instead.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

===Congressman===

[[File:JFK–MKUdall 1961.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Udall with [[John F. Kennedy]] at the [[White House]], May 18, 1961]]

In 1961, his brother was appointed as [[United States Secretary of the Interior|Secretary of the Interior]] in the John F. [[Kennedy administration]]. Mo then won a special election for his brother's vacant seat by 2,000 votes, with 51% of the vote.  He won the seat in his own right in 1962, and was reelected 13 more times.  He faced only one other close race, in 1978, when he received 52 percent of the vote. He held the post until his resignation May 4, 1991.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

For his first term, Udall represented the entire state outside of [[Maricopa County]].  After the 1960s round of redistricting, his district was reduced to the southern portion of the state, centered on [[Tucson]].  After a mid-decade redistricting ordered as a result of ''[[Wesberry v. Sanders]],'' his district absorbed some outer portions of the Phoenix area.

From 1977 until his retirement in 1991, Udall chaired the [[United States House Committee on Natural Resources|House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs]] (on which he'd served since 1963). He also served as [[ranking member]] of the [[United States House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service|Committee of the Post Office and Civil Service]], chairman of the [[Office of Technology Assessment]] and was a member of the [[United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs|Committee on Foreign Affairs]]<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

====Vietnam War====
Udall first gained national political notice for a speech October 23, 1967, in [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]] at a major regional civic meeting, with an audience of 2,800—largely civic leaders, mostly supportive of [[Lyndon Johnson|President Johnson's]] policy on the [[Vietnam War]]. Despite their leanings, Udall gave a firm and direct speech calling the nation's involvement in Vietnam "a mistaken and dangerous road." He [[Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War|called for reversing American escalation of the war]], and eventual U.S. withdrawal—the first major figure in the [[U.S. Democratic Party]] to openly oppose the Democratic president on the war.  The speech drew a standing ovation, and reverberated nationwide, drawing national media and political attention, and initiating the Democratic Party's gradual split over the war.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

====Labor legislation====
On labor legislation, however, Udall was less liberal. Though he opposed [[right-to-work laws]] that undermined labor unions, his constituents very strongly supported them, so Udall did, too—particularly in a 1965 congressional vote that labor leaders held against him for years.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

====Conservation and the environment====
On conservation and [[environmental protection]], Udall's record was mixed—and extreme in both directions—though he is largely credited with being generally a defender of those causes (he first joined the House Interior committee in 1961), particularly as chairman of the [[House Committee on Natural Resources|House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs]]. He fought for [[environmental protection]], and expansion of the [[National Park System]], ushered legislation through Congress absorbing 8 million acres into the federal wilderness system across 20 states, and attempted to restructure the energy industry.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

An important exception was his defense of planned dam-and-reservoir projects in Arizona that threatened to inundate key wilderness areas, including a hydroelectric dam that threatened to flood some of the [[Grand Canyon]].  Hostile campaigning by the nation's leading conservation organization, the [[Sierra Club]], led to Udall's bitter fight with them, and the eventual loss of their [[tax-exempt]] status, which some have blamed on Udall's complaints about them to the [[Internal Revenue Service]].  The projects were eventually abandoned, replaced with [[coal-fired powerplant]]s that Udall thought more polluting than the dams would have been.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

However, in the opposite extreme, Udall's "proudest achievement" was passage of an Alaska lands bill, permanently preserving 104.3 million acres of extraordinary scenic wilderness, over the furious opposition of many in Alaska and in the natural resource industries.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

In 1973, Udall was named "Legislator of the Year" by the [[National Wildlife Federation]].<ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

However, in 1974, his Land Use Bill was defeated—some environmentalists blaming Udall's inability to work the bill effectively on the floor of the House.<ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

From the beginning of his work on the Interior committee in 1961, Udall had been interested in limiting the controversial practice of [[strip mining]], blamed for massive destruction of wilderness and extensive environmental damage, particularly across the [[American West]].  However, it took several years of wrangling with industry, Congress and administrations (Republican President [[Gerald R. Ford]] vetoed the legislation twice), before he was able to pass a limited bill, into law (signed by Democratic President [[Jimmy Carter]]), which constrained the strip-mining of coal, and forced the reclamation of millions of acres of strip-mined areas.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

Udall helped write and pass the [[Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act|Alaska Lands Act of 1980]], and landmark 1982 legislation addressing nuclear waste management.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Udall voted for the [[Abandoned Shipwrecks Act|Abandoned Shipwrecks Act of 1987]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=TO SUSPEND THE RULES AND PASS S 858, ABANDONED SHIPWRECK … -- House Vote #532 -- March 29, 1988 |url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/100-1988/h532 |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=GovTrack.us |language=en}}</ref> The Act asserts United States title to certain abandoned shipwrecks located on or embedded in submerged lands under state jurisdiction, and transfers title to the respective state, thereby empowering states to manage these cultural and historical resources more efficiently, with the goal of preventing [[Treasure hunting|treasure hunters]] and salvagers from damaging them. President [[Ronald Reagan]] signed it into law on April 28, 1988.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Laws - Division of Historical Resources - Florida Department of State |url=https://dos.fl.gov/historical/archaeology/underwater/laws/#:~:text=On%2028%20April%201988,%20President,authority%20over%20those%20abandoned%20shipwrecks. |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=dos.fl.gov}}</ref> 

====Government legislative reform====
Udall challenged the arcane and Byzantine rules and protocols of the House of Representatives, demanding a reduction in the ability of powerful leaders to covertly control legislation and dominate committees. Udall's efforts eventually led to substantial reform of congressional rules and operations.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

Udall gained early national political notoriety for being the first congressman in the 20th century to challenge a sitting [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]] for his seat. He challenged Rep. [[John William McCormack|John McCormack]], in 1968.  Though defeated, Udall tried again two years later, against [[House Majority Leader]], [[Hale Boggs]]; he lost again but shook the foundations of the House seniority system. This was eventually reformed, largely as a result of the revolt begun by Udall.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" />

Like any freshman congressman, Udall struggled to adapt to the office during his first term; but in his second term, he responded to the experience by organizing a school for other incoming freshmen congressman, to teach them the complex and subtle ways of the House of Representatives, and how to navigate the Washington bureaucracy. To aid this effort, Udall wrote a 1966 guidebook, ''The Job of a Congressman.''<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

====Government campaign reform====
Udall co-sponsored the [[Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971]] and was a key factor in its success. The first major campaign-finance reform legislation since 1925, it required candidates to file campaign finance reports. (President [[Richard Nixon]] ran afoul of these requirements in actions related to the [[Watergate scandal]]). Udall also co-sponsored the [[1974 Campaign Reform Act]], which was signed by President Ford. He fought for financial disclosure legislation, and disclosed his own finances and tax returns.<ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

====Government administrative reform====
Reforming civil service and the [[U.S. Post Office]] were a major focus of Udall's efforts in Congress.  On the [[United States House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service|Committee of the Post Office and Civil Service]] since 1961, he eventually became the [[ranking member]]. He attempted to revise pay scales for federal employees and establish merit pay.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Ultimately, Udall was one of the principal leaders effecting the first substantial reform of the U.S. civil service system since the 1883 creation of that merit-based government-employment system. The bill created performance incentives for workers in the bureaucracy, and made firing federal workers easier. Although the bill was a favorite project of President Carter, whom Udall disliked, the congressman pushed the bill through Congress, against numerous roadblocks thrown up by federal employees (and by congressmen representing districts that employed many of them). Udall compromised until getting a consensus bill before the whole House, fighting through additional opposition to success.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" />

Udall sought to change the [[Post Office Department]] from a purely governmental agency into a semiprivate organization (today, it is: the [[U.S. Postal Service]]). He was a key force in passage of the [[Postal Reorganization Act]] of 1970.<ref name="biographical_info_arizona_edu" /><ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

====Other issues====
Because of having lost his eye as a child due to inadequate family finances, he strongly believed that people should have access to competent medical care regardless of their financial condition.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_new_york_times" />

In 1963, Udall attempted to get cigarettes (and other tobacco) regulated by the [[Food and Drug Administration]] (FDA).<ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /> It took years before the scale of tobacco damage due to smoking was known.

On the [[House Foreign Affairs Committee]], Udall opposed Reagan administration policies toward Central America.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

=== Presidential campaign ===
{{More citations needed section|date=March 2025}}
In 1976, Udall [[Democratic Party presidential primaries, 1976|ran for the Democratic nomination for President]] as a liberal alternative to [[Jimmy Carter]], the former Governor of [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]].<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="will_rogers_1974_12_new_york_magazine" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Andelic|first=Patrick|date=2021|title='Wine and Cheese Liberals': Mo Udall's 1976 Presidential Campaign and the New Suburban Democrats|url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/831624|journal=[[Journal of Arizona History]]|volume=62|issue=3|pages=373–406|issn=2689-3908}}</ref> Carter had gone from obscure maverick to front runner after a string of early [[caucus]] and [[Partisan primary|primary]] victories, beginning in [[Iowa]] and [[New Hampshire]]. At the time of the [[Wisconsin]] primary in April, most of the original 10 candidates had dropped out, leaving Udall, Senator [[Henry M. Jackson|Henry "Scoop" Jackson]] of [[Washington (state)|Washington]], Governor [[George Wallace]] of [[Alabama]], and Carter. It appeared that Udall would win the primary, which might have slowed Carter's momentum.{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}} Udall was projected the winner, exclaiming "Oh, how sweet it is".{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}} But Carter eventually won in Wisconsin.

[[File:Mo Udall Campaign Button Crop.png|thumb|right|A campaign button from Udall's 1976 run for President]]
Some newspapers proclaimed Udall the winner because of his lead late the night before.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Pearson|first=Richard|date=14 December 1998|title=Rep. Morris Udall, 76, Dies; Leader on the Environment|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref>

Carter won in Wisconsin by 1%, no more than 7,500 votes. He won 37% to Udall's 36%, gaining one more convention delegate than Udall. Despite the small margins, Carter got the headlines and a further boost to his momentum and pulled away from Udall and the other candidates. Udall finished second in the New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, New York, Michigan, South Dakota, and Ohio primaries, and won the caucuses in his home state of Arizona, while running even with Carter in the New Mexico caucuses. Udall finished a distant second to Carter at the Democratic National Convention, where his name was placed in nomination by [[Archibald Cox]], and Udall's speech received great applause from his supporters.{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}}

During the Michigan primary [[Coleman Young]], the mayor of Detroit, accused Udall of racism for belonging to the LDS church.<ref name="CarsonJohnson2015">{{cite book|author1=Donald W. Carson|author2=James W. Johnson|title=Mo: The Life and Times of Morris K. Udall|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T4h0CgAAQBAJ&pg=PA168|year= 2015|publisher=University of Arizona Press|isbn=978-0816532964|pages=168–}}</ref> At the time, it still prohibited blacks from serving in the church's priesthood (this was changed in 1978 by LDS Church President [[Spencer W. Kimball]]).  Udall had been a longtime critic of that church policy, and had ceased being an active member because of it.{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}} Carter's subsequent sweeping of the black vote in the Michigan primary was key to his crucial and narrow victory in Michigan.{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}}

Udall supported Senator [[Ted Kennedy|Edward Kennedy]]'s challenge to President Carter in 1980, and Kennedy won the Arizona caucuses, one of only three wins for Kennedy in the West.  Udall delivered the keynote speech at the 1980 Democratic National Convention. He considered running for president again in 1984, but he had been diagnosed with [[Parkinson's disease]] in 1979 and his illness kept him on the sidelines.<ref>{{cite web |title=Parkinson's Disease Centers of Excellence |url=https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Current-Research/Focus-Research/Focus-Parkinsons-Disease/Udall-Centers|publisher=National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) |website=www.ninds.nih.gov |accessdate=February 19, 2021}}</ref>  At the convention that summer, Udall introduced his former opponent, President Carter.{{citation-needed|date=March 2025}}

== Legacy ==
[[Image:Morris King Udall.jpg|thumb|right|Udall's official House portrait]]
In 1992, the US Congress founded the [[Morris K. Udall Foundation|Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Foundation]].<ref>{{USPL|102|259}}, 106 Stat. 78, S. 2184, enacted March 19, 1992.</ref> It is an agency of the executive branch of the federal government, and among other functions, gives scholarships to students of environmental policy. In 2009, Congress added Mo's brother, Stewart Udall, as an honoree of the  foundation by renaming it as the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation.

Federal funds for Parkinson's research are designated through the Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Act of 1997.<ref>{{USPL|105|78}}, title VI, §603, November 13, 1997, 111 Stat. 1519, (42 U.S.C. {{USCSec|42|284f}})</ref> The legislation funded a national network of "Centers of Excellence" to diagnose and treat Parkinson disease patients and to refer patients into research protocols.

In 1996 Udall received the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] from President Clinton.

[[Point Udall (Guam)|Point Udall]] on [[Guam]], considered the [[List of extreme points of the United States#Westernmost points|westernmost point of the United States]], was named for him in 1987. The [[List of extreme points of the United States#Easternmost points|easternmost]] spot, [[Point Udall (U.S. Virgin Islands)|Point Udall, U.S. Virgin Islands]], was named for his brother Stewart in 1968.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/17/us/washington-talk-briefing-the-pillars-of-udall.html |title=The Pillars of Udall |first1=Martin |last1=Tolchin |first2=David |last2=Binder |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 17, 1989 |access-date=October 12, 2018}}</ref> This means that "America's day ... begin(s) and end(s) at a Point Udall."<ref name="bill text">{{cite web |url=http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/address/pt_u.html |title=Bill Would Name Guam Point After Morris Udall |author1=Smith, Denny |author-link=Denny Smith |author2=Blaz, Ben |author2-link=Vicente T. Blaz |agency=[[Associated Press]] |publisher=[[University of Arizona]] |access-date=October 12, 2018 |archive-date=April 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170422040806/http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/address/pt_u.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In [[Tucson, Arizona]], the main post office was named in his honor in 2007 as well as a local park.<ref name="KOLD">{{cite web |title=Main Post Office Re-named To Honor Mo Udall |url=https://www.kold.com/story/6600404/main-post-office-re-named-to-honor-mo-udall/ |website=www.kold.com |date=June 2, 2007 |publisher=CNBC |access-date=August 29, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tucsonaz.gov/parks/MorrisKUdallPark |title=Morris K. Udall Park |website=www.tucsonaz.gov |date=August 14, 2017 |publisher=City of Tucson |access-date=August 29, 2020}}</ref>

==Family life==

Udall was married three times. In 1949, he married Patricia "Pat" Emery, with whom he had six children. Patricia, who hated politics, had [[arthritis]] and spent much time in a wheelchair. She and Udall rarely saw each other due to his hectic political schedule. By Mo Udall's own account, Pat had become unsatisfied with her life caused by her illnesses and disinterest in politics. She was also a high-spirited person who had a tendency to frequently start arguments.<ref name="Carson">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T4h0CgAAQBAJ&q=pat|title=Mo: The Life and Times of Morris K. Udall|last1=Carson|first1=Donald W.|last2=Johnson|first2=James W.|year=2015|publisher=University of Arizona Press|isbn=978-0816532964|language=en}}</ref>

Pat Udall struggled emotionally due to the strain of raising six children while struggling with arthritis. Unwilling to undergo [[Psychotherapy|psychological counseling]] due to social stigma, she finally acquiesced and filed for divorce in 1966. Mo Udall, who was opposed to the divorce, did not object to the dissolution of the marriage,{{clarify|date=December 2024}} mainly because he was more focused on politics than on his family.

Both the Udalls later regretted the divorce, explaining that the marriage ended because Pat had failed to get counseling or help and had simply acquiesced to pressure{{from whom|date=December 2024}} and made a poor impulse decision. Pat Udall herself stated that she was "ashamed" by her decision to end the marriage.<ref name="books.google.com"/> Pat went on to marry and divorce three more times in the seven years following her split from Udall, all of which were brief marriages that she later regretted.<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T4h0CgAAQBAJ&q=divorce|title=Mo: The Life and Times of Morris K. Udall|last1=Carson|first1=Donald W.|last2=Johnson|first2=James W.|year=2015|publisher=University of Arizona Press|isbn=978-0816532964|language=en}}</ref> Mo and Pat eventually reconciled, and they remained close friends for the rest of his life.<ref name="books.google.com"/>

Two years after the divorce, Mo Udall married Ella Lee Royston, a marriage that would last until Royston's suicide in 1988. In 1989, he married his third wife, Norma Gilbert, and they remained together until his death in 1998.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/daily/dec98/udall14.htm |title= Environmental Leader Rep. Mo Udall Dies |newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] | date=December 14, 1998 | access-date=October 27, 2014}}</ref> His years in retirement were plagued by Parkinson's disease.<ref name="Carson"/>

Udall's son [[Mark Udall]] was elected to the U.S. Congress from Colorado's 2nd district in 1998, and to the U.S. Senate in 2008. His nephew [[Tom Udall]] of [[New Mexico]] was also elected to the U.S. Senate in 2008. Mo Udall's second cousin, Republican Senator [[Gordon Smith (politician)|Gordon Smith]] of Oregon, was defeated for re-election the same year.

== Books and archives ==
With the exception of Udall's first book, his books have been described as "humorous and informative works."<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />
* ''Arizona Law of Evidence'' (1960).<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />
* ''The Job of a Congressman'' (1966) – a guidebook for freshmen Congressmen.<ref name="this_fella_from_arizona_1981_11_audubon" /><ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />
* ''Education of a Congressman'' (1972).<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />
* ''Too Funny to Be President'' (1988) — his autobiography.<ref name="obit_1998_12_14_washington_post" />

Udall's archives of his professional career and personal life are located the University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections in Tucson, Arizona.
* [http://speccoll.library.arizona.edu/collections/papers-morris-k-udall MS 325] Papers of Morris K. Udall, 1920–1995

UAL Special Collections is also home to the Morris K. Udall Oral History Project, [http://speccoll.library.arizona.edu/collections/morris-k-udall-oral-history-project MS 396] that includes interviews from former Presidents, former and current Congressmen, Senators, journalists, key staff members, campaign aides, family and friends of Mo Udall and the Udall family.

== See also ==
{{Portal|Biography}}
* [[Udall family]]
* [[Lee-Hamblin family]]
* [[List of members of the American Legion]]
* [[List of American sportsperson-politicians]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
* Carson, Donald W., and Johnson, James W., 2004, ''Mo: The Life and Times of Morris K. Udall .'' Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press. ({{ISBN|0816524491}})

== External links ==
{{commons category|Mo Udall}}
{{Wikiquote|Morris Udall}}
{{CongBio|U000001}}
* [http://www.udall.gov Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060427102319/http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/2111.html Biography] – at the [[Political Graveyard]]
* [http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/udall/ Morris K. Udall manuscript collection], the Library of the [[University of Arizona]]
* {{C-SPAN|906}}

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