John F. Shafroth

John Franklin Shafroth (June 9, 1854 – February 20, 1922) was a United States Representative, Senator, and Governor from Colorado.

Early life

Born in Fayette, Missouri, he attended the common schools and graduated from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1875. He studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1876 and commenced practice in Fayette. He moved to Denver, Colorado in 1879 and continued the practice of law.

Political career

He was city attorney from 1887 to 1891 and was elected as a Republican to the Fifty-fourth Congress as a Representative. He then joined other Colorado officials such as Senator Henry M. Teller, splitting from the Republicans to join the Silver Republican third party, on whose ticket he was reelected to the Fifty-fifth, Fifty-sixth, and Fifty-seventh Congresses. To the Fifty-eighth Congress, he presented credentials as a Democratic Member-elect. Thus, he served in the U.S. House from March 4, 1895, until his resignation on February 15, 1904, when he declared that, due to fraud in 29 electoral precincts, he was unable to legitimately assert that he had won the election, and requested that his opponent, Robert W. Bonynge, replace him. Subsequently, Shafroth was often referred to (sometimes admiringly, sometimes sarcastically) as "Honest John."