Jim Nance McCord

Jim Nance McCord

Jim Nance McCord (born March 17, 1879 in Unionville , Bedford County , Tennessee , † September 2, 1968 in Nashville , Tennessee) was an American politician ( Democratic Party ) and the 44th governor of the state of Tennessee.

Early years and political advancement

After finishing school in 1894, McCord first worked in a hardware store. He later sold books for a while before he was a traveling dealer from 1900 to 1910. In 1910 he became a co-owner of the "Marshall Gazette", a local daily newspaper, which he later acquired and published. He was also an auctioneer for livestock and real estate. Between 1915 and 1942 he was a member of the Marshall County District Court and from 1917 to 1942 he served continuously as mayor of the city of Lewisburg . In 1932 he was one of Franklin D. Roosevelt's electors ; In 1940 he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention . In 1942 he was elected to the US House of Representatives for a two-year term as representative of the fifth constituency of Tennessee .

Governor of Tennessee

For the 1944 gubernatorial election, incumbent Prentice Cooper was no longer allowed to run because he had reached the constitutional limit of three consecutive terms. With the help of the influential Edward Crump , McCord was chosen as a Democratic candidate. After his safe victory over Republican John W. Kilgo and a re-election, he remained in office for two terms until 1949. His first task was to initiate the changeover of the state to peacetime after the end of the Second World War. This also included the conversion of industrial production to civilian goods. As governor, he increased the budget for education. The funds were raised through the introduction of a two percent VAT. With a new labor law, McCord made himself unpopular with his voters. The VAT and labor law were the reasons for his internal party defeat in the primaries of 1948. Instead of him, ex-Governor Gordon Browning was nominated and elected.

Another résumé

After the end of his tenure, he was a 1953 delegate to the Convention to Reform the Constitution of Tennessee. The old constitution had remained unchanged since 1870 and now had to be adapted to the conditions of the 20th century. A key point of reform was the extension of the governor's term of office from two to four years. McCord was from 1953 to 1958 environmental officer under Governor Frank G. Clement and 1958 unsuccessful candidate for an independent list for the office of governor. In 1956 he was again a delegate to the Federal Convention of the Democratic Party.

Web links

• Jim Nance McCord in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Jim Nance McCord in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• Jim McCord in the National Governors Association (English)
• The governors of Tennessee (English)