Michael Joseph Howlett Sr. (August 30, 1914 – May 4, 1992) was an American politician who served as the 24th Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts and 33rd Illinois Secretary of State.

Howlett was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Illinois in the 1976 Illinois gubernatorial election, following his victory over incumbent Daniel Walker in the Democratic primary. He lost to Republican Jim Thompson in the general election.

Early life

Howlett was born in Chicago, a son of Irish immigrants. Howlett was All-American water polo player, participating on ten championship teams of the Illinois Athletic Club. He graduated from St. Mel High School and briefly attended DePaul University, leaving in 1934 to become a state bank examiner.

Career

Early career

In the 1930s, Howlett established an independent insurance business. He later served as Chicago-area director of the National Youth Administration, worked as an executive for the Chicago Park District, and was appointed regional director of the Economic Stabilization Agency. He later worked as a steel company executive. He served in the United States Navy during World War II.

Illinois Auditor

In 1956, Howlett ran for Illinois State Auditor and is credited with exposing incumbent Auditor Orville Hodge as having embezzled $6.15 million in state funds. While Hodge was removed from office and eventually sent to prison, Howlett lost the general election to Elbert Sidney Smith as part of a national Republican landslide. However, in the next general election, in 1960, Howlett was elected Auditor of Public Accounts (the Auditor's Office was the predecessor to the current office of Comptroller), and was re-elected twice. During Howlett's first term as Auditor, he cut the budget of the office by 20%, and returned over $600,000 of the funds stolen by Hodge to the state treasury.

Early polls of the contest had Howlett in the lead, although Thompson had nearly closed the gap by the time of the primary. However, Walker's attacks during the bitter primary weakened Howlett, and by August, Thompson held a slim lead in the polls. was nominated by the Solidarity Party. Stevenson-Howlett went down to defeat in the fall, with only 40% of the vote. Another son, Edward G. Howlett, was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for Chicago City Clerk in 1995.

Death and legacy

Howlett died in Chicago's Mercy Hospital of chronic kidney failure. He had suffered a stroke three months earlier and remained hospitalized from then until his death.

The building housing the offices of the Illinois Secretary of State in Springfield, Illinois, formerly known as the Centennial Building, is named after Howlett.

Election history

! Year

! Office

! Election

!

! Subject

! Party

! Votes

! %

!

! Opponent

! Party

! Votes

! %

|-

|1976

|Governor of Illinois

|Primary

||

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF align = "right"|811,721

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |53.82

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Dan Walker (Inc.)

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF align = "right"|696,380

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |46.18

|-

|1972

|Illinois Secretary of State

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |2,360,327

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |51.69

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Edmund J. Kucharski

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |2,187,544

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |47.91

|-

|1968

|Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett (Inc.)

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |2,215,401

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |50.99

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |William C. Harris

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |2,106,676

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |48.49

|-

|1964

|Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett (Inc.)

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |2,513,831

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |55.47

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |John Kirby

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |2,017,951

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |44.53

|-

|1960

|Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |2,296,220

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |50.44

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Elbert S. Smith (Inc.)

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |2,246,833

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |49.35

|-

|1956

|Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |1,992,707

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |47.23

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Elbert S. Smith

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |2,217,229

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |52.55

|-

|1950

|Illinois Treasurer

|General

|

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Michael Howlett

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |Democratic

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |1,568,763

|bgcolor=#DDEEFF |44.32

|

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |William G. Stratton

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |Republican

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |1,959,734

|bgcolor=#FFE8E8 |55.36

|-

References

Sources

  • Chicago Tribune Historical Archive online (May 5, 1992), retrieved April 28, 2007.
  • Illinois Comptroller web site - History of the Office - Howlett
  • "Howlett v. Thompson," Illinois Issues, November 1976
  • 1975-1976 Illinois Blue Book p40