Betsey Bayless (born January 10, 1944) was the 16th

Secretary of State of Arizona The secretary of state of Arizona is an elected position in the U.S. state of Arizona. Since Arizona does not have a lieutenant governor, the secretary stands first in the line of succession to the governorship. The secretary also serves as acti ...

from September 5, 1997, until January 6, 2003. She was appointed to fill the unexpired term of fellow Republican

Jane Dee Hull Jane Dee Hull (; August 8, 1935 – April 16, 2020) was an American politician and educator. In 1997, she ascended to the office of governor of Arizona following the resignation of Fife Symington, becoming the state's 20th governor. Hull was ...

. She was elected to a full term November 3, 1998.

Early life and education

Bayless was born in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, and is a third generation Arizonan. Bayless graduated from

Xavier High School A multitude of schools and universities have been named after St. Francis Xavier, a Spanish Roman Catholic saint and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. This page lists notable educational institutions named after St. Xavier, arranged by country a ...

in 1962. She earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

Studies and

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from the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

, where, as a

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

, she received the Freeman Medal as outstanding graduate in 1966. She earned her

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment (public governance), management of non-profit establ ...

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

Political career

Prior to her appointment as Secretary of State, Bayless was a member of the

Maricopa County Maricopa County is in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,420,568, making it the state's most populous county, and the fourth-most populous in the United States. It contains about 6 ...

Board of Supervisors where she served two terms as board chair. Bayless also served as Director of the state Department of Administration, as Acting Director of the state Department of Revenue and as Assistant Director of the

Arizona Board of Regents The Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) is the governing body of Arizona's public university system. It provides policy guidance to Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University, the University of Arizona, and their branch campuses. History ...

. She ran in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

for the Republican nomination for Governor, but came in a distant second to Matt Salmon, who in turn narrowly lost to

Janet Napolitano Janet Ann Napolitano (; born November 29, 1957) is an American politician, lawyer, and university administrator who served as the 21st governor of Arizona from 2003 to 2009 and third United States secretary of homeland security from 2009 to 20 ...

. Bayless was succeeded in office by fellow Republican

Jan Brewer Janice Kay Brewer (''née'' Drinkwine, formerly Warren; born September 26, 1944) is an American politician and author who was the 22nd governor of Arizona from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party, Brewer is the fourth woman (and was ...

Post-political career

In 2005, Bayless was hired as the chief executive officer for the Maricopa Integrated Health System (MIHS), the public hospital and health care system of

. Bayless has been credited with restoring the MIHS to financial viability and expansion of hospital facilities. Following her retirement from the position in 2013, Bayless became president emeritus for the MIHS.

Awards

Bayless received an honorary doctorate from the University of Arizona in 2001. In 2005, Bayless received the Valley Leadership Woman of the Year Award.

References

External links

Arizona Secretaries of State timeline

Arizona Secretary of State biography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bayless, Betsey ASU College of Public Service & Community Solutions alumni County supervisors in Arizona Living people Politicians from Phoenix, Arizona University of Arizona alumni Secretaries of State of Arizona State cabinet secretaries of Arizona Women in Arizona politics Women state constitutional officers of Arizona Arizona Republicans 1944 births 21st-century American women