Ben L. Jones

Ben Lewis Jones
Ben Jones and the General Lee, taken outside his store "Cooter's Place" in Sperryville, Virginia in 1999
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 4th district
In office January 3, 1989 – January 3, 1993
Preceded by	Pat Swindall
Succeeded by	John Linder
Personal details
Born	August 30, 1941 (1941-08-30) Tarboro, North Carolina U.S.
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic
Profession	Actor

Ben Lewis Jones (born August 30, 1941) is an American actor, politician, playwright and essayist, probably best known for his role as Cooter Davenport in The Dukes of Hazzard. Jones also served for four years in the United States House of Representatives from January 1989 to January 3, 1993.

Personal life

Jones is a 1959 graduate of Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth, Virginia and attended the University of North Carolina for four years. He is married to Alma Viator. They have a daughter, Rachel, and a son, Walker. Jones is a long time friend of Cincinnati Reds announcer Marty Brennaman.

Since the 1990s, Jones has run a chain of "Cooter's museums" across the US, dedicated to The Dukes of Hazzard. He also organized the annual "Dukefest" gathering.

Political career

Following the end of The Dukes of Hazzard, Jones entered the political arena as a Democrat. In 1986, he ran unsuccessfully against Pat Swindall for a seat in the United States House of Representatives from Georgia, but lost, winning 47% of the vote, more than expected.^{[citation needed]} He ran again in 1988, against Swindall, this time easily winning. Jones was narrowly re-elected in 1990, but in 1992, following redistricting which moved his home into another district, he was defeated in the Democratic primary election. In 1994, he ran against the then-House Minority Whip and soon-to-be House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Jones received 35% of the vote.

Jones has since returned to acting, as well as becoming a well-known writer, writing many political essays and one play.^{[citation needed]}

In 1998, he broke from most Democrats and asked President Bill Clinton to resign during his trial and impeachment. Jones is still active in the Democratic Party. In 2002, he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the United States House from Virginia against Republican incumbent Eric Cantor, thus becoming one of very few recent American politicians to seek elective office in more than one state.

External links

• Ben Jones at the Internet Movie Database
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Works by or about Ben L. Jones in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Campaign contributions for 2002 U.S. Congressional District 7 of Virginia
• Welcome to Cooters place, Gatlinburg, Tennessee and Nashville, Tennessee
• Profile at Hazzardnet.com
• The Dukes of Hazzard star who could destroy Newt Gingrich... again, Ed Pilkington, The Guardian, January 26, 2011

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Pat Swindall	United States Representative for the 4th Congressional District of Georgia January 3, 1989–January 2, 1993	Succeeded by John Linder