Earl Sylvester Coe (1892 – May 23, 1964) was an American politician who served as the ninth

Secretary of State of Washington The secretary of state of Washington is an independently elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Washington. Fifteen individuals have held the office of Secretary of State since statehood. The ...

. Coe previously served as a member of the

Washington State Legislature The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Senat ...

Early life

Coe was born and raised in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

Career

In 1913, he relocated to

Bingen, Washington Bingen is a city in Klickitat County, Washington, United States. The population was 712 at the 2010 census, a 6% increase over the 2000 census. History Bingen was founded by P.J. Suksdorf in 1892, and named by him for Bingen am Rhein in Germany. ...

, where he worked in the shipping and lumber business. In 1938, he was elected to the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

. In 1944, he was elected to the

Washington State Senate The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 members, each representing a district with a population of nearly 160,000. The State Senate meets at the Legislative Building in Olympi ...

. He was also an unsuccessful candidate for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

in 1946. From 1946 to 1948, he served as the chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. He was a Democratic candidate for the

1956 Washington gubernatorial election The 1956 Washington gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 1956, between Democratic state senator Albert Rosellini and Republican lieutenant governor Emmett T. Anderson. Rosellini defeated Anderson during the general election, be ...

, losing to

Albert Rosellini Albert Dean Rosellini (January 21, 1910 – October 10, 2011) was an American politician who served as the List of governors of Washington, 15th governor of Washington from 1957 to 1965 and was both the first Italian Americans, Italian-Americ ...

. When Rosellini was elected governor, he appointed Coe to serve as secretary of state. He served from 1948 to 1957. He later served as the director of the Washington Department of Conservation.Earl Coe papers
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Death

Coe died in

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat and largest city of Thurston County. It is southwest of the state's most populous city, Seattle, and is a cultural center of the southern Puget Sound region. European ...

in 1964.

References

1892 births 1964 deaths People from Minneapolis Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators Secretaries of State of Washington (state) 20th-century American politicians {{Washington-politician-stub