William Ryan deGraffenried, Jr. (April 2, 1950 – December 7, 2006) served as President Pro Tempore of the

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

State Senate from 1987 to 1995.

Early life and education

DeGraffenried was born in

Tuscaloosa, Alabama Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...

. He graduated from the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

and the Cumberland School of Law at

Samford University Samford University is a private Christian university in Homewood, Alabama. In 1841, the university was founded as Howard College by Baptists. Samford University describes itself as the 87th oldest institution of higher learning in the United Sta ...

Career

DeGraffenried represented

Tuscaloosa Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...

in the Alabama State Senate from 1978 until 1994 and served as the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, from 1987 until 1994. He was elected to the Senate in a special election when then-State Sen.

Richard Shelby Richard Craig Shelby (born May 6, 1934) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Alabama. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986 as a Democrat who later switched to the Republican Party in 1994, h ...

was elected to the

U.S. 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

to fill the vacancy of

Walter Flowers Walter Winkler Flowers, Jr. (April 12, 1933 – April 12, 1984) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician who represented Alabama's 5th congressional district and Alabama's 7th congressional district in the Unit ...

. After

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 ...

H. Guy Hunt Harold Guy Hunt (June 17, 1933 – January 30, 2009) was an American politician, pastor, and convicted felon who served as the 49th governor of Alabama from 1987 to 1993. He was the first Republican to serve as governor of the state since Rec ...

was removed from office due to criminal conviction, the Lieutenant Governor,

Jim Folsom, Jr. James Elisha 'Jim' Folsom Jr. (born May 14, 1949) is an American politician who was the 50th governor of Alabama from April 22, 1993, to January 16, 1995. He has also served as the lieutenant governor of Alabama on two occasions. He is a member ...

became the new governor. DeGraffenried, as the President Pro Tempore of the state Senate, became next in line for the governorship for the remainder of the quadrennium. DeGraffenried ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor in 1994, losing the Democratic primary to future Governor

Don Siegelman Donald Eugene Siegelman ( ; born February 24, 1946) is a former American politician, lawyer and convicted felon who was the 51st governor of Alabama from 1999 to 2003. A member of the Democratic Party, as of , Siegelman is the last Democrat, as ...

. He then returned to practicing law in Tuscaloosa and later became a contract lobbyist.

Personal life

His father, Ryan DeGraffenried, Sr., was also an Alabama politician. He died unexpectedly of undisclosed natural causes in 2006 while attending a conference in Hoover, Alabama, aged 56."Former Alabama Sen. Ryan deGraffenried Jr. Dies," WSFA 12 News Montgomery, December 13, 2006
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References

Electoral history

Alabama Senate (16th district), 1982 * Ryan DeGraffenried (D) (inc.) - 20,149 (100.00%) Alabama Senate (21st district), 1983 * Ryan DeGraffenried (D) (inc.) - 7,164 (100.00%) Alabama Senate (21st district), 1986 * Ryan DeGraffenried (D) (inc.) - 23,101 (100.00%) Alabama Senate (21st district), 1990 * Ryan DeGraffenried (D) (inc.) - 24,445 (100.00%)

Lieutenant Governor of Alabama The lieutenant governor of Alabama is the president and presiding officer of the Alabama Senate, elected to serve a four-year term. The office was created in 1868,1868 Const. art. V, § 1 abolished in 1875,1875 Const. art. V, § 1 and recreated in ...

(Democratic primary), 1994 *

- 273,621 (38.62%) * Ryan DeGraffenried - 260,571 (36.78%) *

George Wallace, Jr. George Corley Wallace III, generally known as George Wallace Jr., (born October 17, 1951) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Alabama. He is the only son of George and Lurleen Wallace, each of whom was Democratic governor of Alabama. ...

- 174,302 (24.60%) Lieutenant Governor of Alabama (Democratic primary runoff), 1994 *

- 297,937 (57.32%) * Ryan DeGraffenried - 221,877 (42.68%) Source
OurCampaigns.com DeGraffenried page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Degraffenried, Ryan 1950 births 2006 deaths Democratic Party Alabama state senators Politicians from Tuscaloosa, Alabama Place of birth missing 20th-century American politicians

Ryan Ryan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Ryan (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) *Ryan (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) Places Australia * Division of Ryan, an elector ...