Harry L. Sears

Harry Lloyd Sears (January 16, 1920 – May 17, 2002) was an American lawyer and Republican Party politician who served for 10 years in the New Jersey Legislature. He was the New Jersey chairman for the 1972 re-election campaign of President Richard Nixon and was later indicted on charges of bribery and conspiracy stemming from the secret delivery of $200,000 from financier Robert Vesco to Nixon's campaign. He was given immunity in return for his testimony.

Early life
Sears was born in 1920 in Butler, New Jersey. He graduated in 1942 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tennessee. During World War II he served as a lieutenant in the United States Navy. He received his law degree from Rutgers School of Law—Newark.

Legislative career
Sears was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly from Morris County in 1961 and was re-elected in 1963 and 1965. He was elected to the New Jersey Senate in 1967. In 1969, he unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for Governor of New Jersey. He lost the Republican primary to William T. Cahill, also finishing behind U.S. Rep. Charles W. Sandman, Jr., and ahead of State Sen. Frank X. McDermott and Board of Public Utilities Commissioner William E. Ozzard.

From 1970 to 1971, Sears served as the majority leader in the Senate. He was instrumental in passing legislation that created the New Jersey Lottery and the Meadowlands Sports Complex, signed into law by Governor Cahill. In March 1971, he announced that he would resign from office and return to his legal practice.

After leaving office, Sears was named chairman of the New Jersey campaign to re-elect Richard Nixon in the 1972 presidential election. He also served as counsel for the International Controls Corporation, a company run by financier Robert Vesco. Vesco's company was under investigation by the SEC for its takeover of the Investors Overseas Service.

Later life
Sears later returned to private practice, specializing in land use and real estate law, until retiring in 1992. After a short illness, he died in 2002 in Denville at the age of 82.