Booth Gardner

Booth Gardner (born August 21, 1936 in Tacoma , Washington , † March 15, 2013 there ) was an American politician . He was the 19th governor of Washington state from 1985 to 1993 .

Early years and political advancement

Booth Gardner was one of the heirs to the Weyerhaeuser estate. He studied first until 1958 at the University of Washington . Then he continued his studies at Harvard . He graduated there in 1963. In 1966 he was briefly assistant dean of the Department of Commerce at Harvard University. Between 1967 and 1972 he was a director of the University of Puget Sound's Department of Commerce and Economics in Tacoma.

As a member of the Democratic Party , Gardner was a member of the Washington Senate between 1970 and 1973 . After that, he was head of the Laird Norton Company , a company operating in eleven US states, until 1980 . In 1981 he returned to the political scene as the District Administrator of Pierce County . He held this office until 1984. That year he was elected as his party's candidate for the new governor, with 53:47 percent of the vote against the Republican incumbent John Spellman .

Washington governor

Booth Gardner took office on January 16, 1985. After being re-elected in 1988, he could remain in office until January 13, 1993. As governor, he campaigned for the expansion of trade and trade routes. He also stood up for environmental protection and supported the fight against AIDS financially. Education policy was also promoted by him. In 1989 he celebrated the 100th anniversary of Washington's accession to the United States. Gardner was also a member of several governors' associations.

Another résumé

After the end of his tenure, he was the American ambassador to the GATT talks. Gardner was on many associations and boards of directors. He also campaigned privately for health improvement and founded the Seattle Mental Health Institute, among other things. Gardner, who suffered from Parkinson's Disease , campaigned for the euthanasia law to come into effect in Washington State as the Washington Death with Dignity Act March 5, 2009. This work is featured in the documentary The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner (2009) by David Junge.

He was married to Jean Forstrom. The couple had two children.

Web links

Commons : Booth Gardner - collection of images, videos and audio files

personal data
SURNAME	Gardner, Booth
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	August 21, 1936
PLACE OF BIRTH	Tacoma , Washington
DATE OF DEATH	15 March 2013
Place of death	Tacoma , Washington