John Victor Evans Sr. (January 18, 1925 – July 8, 2014) was an American politician from
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
. A member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, he was the state's 27th
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
and was in office for nearly ten years, from 1977 to 1987.NND.com-Governor John V. Evans /ref>
Biography
Born in
Malad, Idaho
Malad City (also commonly known as Malad) is the only city in Oneida County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 2,095 at the 2010 census, down from 2,158 in 2000.National Governors Association-John V. Evans Evans was an
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
man in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Following the war, he attended
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
and graduated in 1951. He and his wife, Lola Daniels Evans (1927–2015), were married for over 69 years and had five children: three sons and two daughters.
Career
Evans returned to Malad after college to help run the family wheat and cattle ranch. He was elected to the
state senate
A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...
at age 27 in 1952 and re-elected in 1954 and 1956, serving as majority leader in his final term. In 1960, Evans became mayor of Malad City and served in that capacity until 1966. He returned to the state senate in 1969 and served as minority leader from 1969 to 1975.
Evans was elected
lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
in 1974, and became governor in January 1977 when Cecil Andrus accepted an appointment to become the
Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to:
* Secretary of the Interior (Mexico)
* Interior Secretary of Pakistan
* Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines)
* United States Secretary of the Interior
See also
*Interior ministry ...
in the new
Carter
Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to:
Geography United States
* Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Montana, a census-designated place
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administration.
Evans finished Andrus' term and was elected governor in his own right in
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...
, defeating
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
house
speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** I ...
Allan Larsen
Allan Franklin Larsen (April 4, 1919 – March 2, 2005) was an American Republican politician from Eastern Idaho who served as a member of both chambers of the Idaho Legislature. He was the Republican nominee in the 1978 Idaho gubernatorial elec ...
of
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy, ''Niitsitapi'' or ''Siksikaitsitapi'' (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or " Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Bla ...
. Through 2021, Evans remains the only
Mormon
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
to win election as governor in Idaho;Arnold Williams was the first to serve as governor, for slightly over a year starting in late 1945, but lost the
1946
Events January
* January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held.
* January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...
election. Evans was re-elected in
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
, narrowly defeating Republican lieutenant governor Phil Batt of Wilder in a contest so close on election night that at least one Idaho television network incorrectly declared Batt the winner.
While in office as governor in 1981, Evans' 29-year-old son John was the target of a foiled kidnapping attempt in Burley.
Elections
After nearly a decade as a governor, Evans ran for the
U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
in
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
, but was defeated by Republican incumbent
Steve Symms
Steven Douglas Symms (born April 23, 1938) is an American politician and lobbyist who served as a four-term congressman (1973–81) and two-term U.S. Senator (1981–93), representing Idaho. He is a partner at Parry, Romani, DeConcini & Symms, a ...
of
Caldwell
Caldwell may refer to:
People
* Caldwell (surname)
* Caldwell (given name)
* Caldwell First Nation, a federally recognized Indian band in southern Ontario, Canada
Places
Great Britain
* Caldwell, Derbyshire, a hamlet
* Caldwell, East ...
. He was succeeded as governor by Andrus, who served two more terms, giving the Democrats six consecutive elections for governor in the state, holding the office from 1971 to 1995.
:
Later life and death
Evans became president of the family-owned D. L. Evans Bank in Burley in January 1987, which was founded in 1904 in
Albion
Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than 'Britain' today. The name for Scot ...
by his grandfather, David Lloyd Evans, Sr. (1854–1929). Evans died at age 89 in 2014 at his Boise home on July 8. Less than year later, his widow Lola died at home in Boise on May 19, 2015, at the age of 88. They are interred at the Malad City Cemetery in Malad City.