He received his early education in the Somerset County, Maryland, public schools, and later attended Bryant and Stratton Business College where he studied banking and accounting.

After college, Tawes earned a living working in lumbering and canning firms that were owned by his father, which later expanded into shipbuilding, baking, and banking.

[2] Tawes' political career began in 1930 when he was elected as clerk of the court for Somerset County, Maryland, narrowly defeating his opponent Harry T. Phoebus by 72 votes.

He faced minor opposition in the primary, and defeated Republican James Devereux, a Congressman and veteran of World War II, by approximately 200,000 votes in the general election.

[2] The beginning of Tawes' term as governor was benefited by the overwhelming Democratic majority present in both houses of the Maryland General Assembly.

The allocation of state aid to educational institutions was recalculated by the legislature during his second term, resulting in increased funds being directed towards the most needy districts.

[3] His final years in office involved the initiation of the review of the Maryland Constitution of 1867, and the establishment of commissions to remove areas of waste within the government.

Tawes was voted honorary president by the members of the convention, but remained silent during the proceedings as to not give the impression of a conflict of interest.

[2] After the signing of the Constitutional ratifications, Tawes was appointed by his successor, Governor Spiro Agnew, to serve as Chairman of the Board of Natural Resources.

Agnew's successor, Marvin Mandel, appointed Tawes as Secretary of the newly created Department of Natural Resources, where he served as an advocate for the protection and nurturing of Maryland's environment.

While publicly seen as weak due to his age and often indirect administration methods, Tawes was capable of pushing legislation through the General Assembly when necessary, though he was not always eager to do so.

[4] Before his death, Tawes noted his proudest accomplishments revolved around leaving a state government that was fiscally sound, and also for improving the education system and establishing community colleges.