Washington Governor. He served as the 18th Governor of Washington from January 14, 1981 to January 16, 1985. He attended Seattle Preparatory School before serving two years in the Navy. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history and political science at Seattle University, where he was valedictorian of the class of 1949. In 1953, he completed his law degree at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and returned to Seattle to practice labor law. After an unsuccessful run for mayor of Seattle in 1964, he won a seat on the King County commission in 1966. He was a key backer of the county’s change to a charter government, done to address ineffectiveness, corruption and cronyism, and was elected to be the first King County executive in 1969 and was twice re-elected. He first ran for the governorship of Washington in 1976 as a Republican, but lost to Democrat Dixy Lee Ray. He would go on to defeat Jim Mc Dermott, who had defeated Governor Ray in the Democrat primary, four years later in 1980 and served as governor from 1981 to 1985, after losing to Democrat Booth Gardner in November of 1984. His tenure as governor included getting voters to approve tax-free bonds for industries that created jobs in the state. After leaving office, he became a law partner for a Seattle law firm and continued with this until 2016. He also served on numerous boards throughout his career.
Washington Governor. He served as the 18th Governor of Washington from January 14, 1981 to January 16, 1985. He attended Seattle Preparatory School before serving two years in the Navy. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history and political science at Seattle University, where he was valedictorian of the class of 1949. In 1953, he completed his law degree at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and returned to Seattle to practice labor law. After an unsuccessful run for mayor of Seattle in 1964, he won a seat on the King County commission in 1966. He was a key backer of the county’s change to a charter government, done to address ineffectiveness, corruption and cronyism, and was elected to be the first King County executive in 1969 and was twice re-elected. He first ran for the governorship of Washington in 1976 as a Republican, but lost to Democrat Dixy Lee Ray. He would go on to defeat Jim Mc Dermott, who had defeated Governor Ray in the Democrat primary, four years later in 1980 and served as governor from 1981 to 1985, after losing to Democrat Booth Gardner in November of 1984. His tenure as governor included getting voters to approve tax-free bonds for industries that created jobs in the state. After leaving office, he became a law partner for a Seattle law firm and continued with this until 2016. He also served on numerous boards throughout his career.
Bio by: Mr. Badger Hawkeye
Family Members
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