Ernest Lister

Ernest Lister (born June 15, 1870 in Halifax , England , † June 14, 1919 ) was an American politician and from 1913 to 1919 the eighth governor of Washington state .

Early years

Lister spent the first 14 years of his life in his English homeland. Then his family emigrated to America, where they settled in Tacoma , Washington Territory . Lister's uncle was the mayor of that town. Ernest Lister soon ran a foundry and a wood processing factory.

Political rise

At the beginning of his political career, Lister joined the Populist Party . In 1894 he was elected to the Tacoma City Council and in 1896 he was the campaign manager of Governor John Rogers . Following Rogers' election victory, Lister was rewarded for his efforts with the appointment of chairman of an oversight committee that oversaw the state's welfare program.

As the Populist Party merged more and more with the Democratic Party in the years just before the turn of the century , both Rogers and Lister joined this party. In 1912, Lister ran for his party's nomination for the upcoming gubernatorial election. However, he could not prevail in the primaries. Only when shortly before the actual election the democratic candidate was declared ineligible did Lister move up to become the top candidate of his party. He then succeeded in winning the gubernatorial elections. But he should be the only Democrat to be elected to political office in Washington State that year. Accordingly, he had a difficult position against the opposition in the following years.

Washington governor

Ernest Lister took up his new office on January 11, 1913. As governor, he campaigned for the interests of agriculture. He promoted irrigation systems and measures for clearing arable land. At the same time, he supported a state insurance company for industrial accidents and vetoed a bill by the state parliament that would have deprived members of the Industrial Workers of the World from civil rights. It is thanks to his efforts that the eight-hour day arrived on the northwest coast of the USA. In 1916 Lister was elected to office; again he was the only Democratic Party candidate who could win official office. His second term was overshadowed by the events of World War I, in which the United States had participated since April 1917. In Washington State, too, production was converted to armaments requirements. The US Army founded Fort Lewis in 1917 .

Lister fell seriously ill during his second term in office and died on June 14, 1919, on the eve of his 49th birthday. The remaining term as governor had to end Lieutenant Governor Louis F. Hart . Ernest Lister was married to Alma Thornton, with whom he had two children.

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personal data
SURNAME	Lister, Ernest
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	American politician
DATE OF BIRTH	June 15, 1870
PLACE OF BIRTH	Halifax , England
DATE OF DEATH	June 14, 1919