the United States Navy and served at the rank of seaman apprentice. He was promoted to ensign in 1944 and served sea duty in the Pacific Ocean, including the recently devastated Hiroshima, from 1944 until he was released from active duty in 1946. Following the war, Mathias rose to the rank of captain in the United States Naval Reserve. Mathias briefly served as assistant Attorney General of Maryland from 1953 to 1954. From 1954 to 1959, he worked as the City Attorney of Frederick, where he supported civil rights for African Americans. He played a role in desegregating the local Opera House movie theater, which restricted African American seating to the back of the theater. Mathias also worked to relocate the Frederick post office and helped protect a park in the city. In 1958, he was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates, serving from 1959 to 1960. As a delegate, he voted in favor of Maryland ratifying the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which secured African American rights following the American Civil War. With his support, the legislature ratified the amendment in 1959, nearly 100 years after it was first introduced. In 1958, Mathias married Ann Bradford, whom he met at a birthday party for his law school roommate Daniel Brewster. Ann Bradford (1928–2012) was the daughter of former Massachusetts governor Robert F. Bradford. Their children included sons Robert and Charles. In the House of Representatives On January 4, 1960, Mathias declared his candidacy for the House seat of . He officially began his campaign in March, establishing public education and controls on government spending as two of his priorities should he be elected. In the primary elections of May 1960, Mathias handily defeated his two rivals, garnering a 3–1 margin of victory. Mathias' opponent in the general election was John R. Foley, a former judge who had unseated DeWitt Hyde in a Democratic landslide in the state two years prior. Both candidates attacked each other's voting records, with Foley accusing Mathias of skipping more than 500 votes in the House of Delegates and having the "worst Republican record in Annapolis". Mathias previously accused Foley of voting "present" (a de facto abstention) in the House too often, and argued Foley's inaction led to inflation and higher taxes. Mathias prevailed over Foley on election day in November 1960, unseating the one-term incumbent and becoming the first representative from