Stevenson, Adlai Ewing (1900–1965)

US Democratic politician. As governor of Illinois 1949–53 he campaigned vigorously against corruption in public life, and as Democratic candidate for the presidency in 1952 and 1956 was twice defeated by Dwight D Eisenhower. In 1945 he was chief US delegate at the founding conference of the United Nations (UN) and in 1961 he was ambassador to the UN.

Stevenson was born in Los Angeles, California. He was educated at Princeton University, and Northwestern University Law School, and was admitted to the bar in 1926. He practised law in Chicago, where he became active on the Council on Foreign Relations and the Committee to Defend America by Aiding the Allies. He served in the administration of Franklin D Roosevelt in the 1930s and 1940s, and was assistant to the secretary of the navy 1941–44.