John F. Simms

John Simms is a redirect to this article. For other people, see John Sims .

John Field Simms (born December 18, 1916 in Albuquerque , New Mexico , † April 11, 1975 ibid) was an American politician and from 1955 to 1957 the 16th  governor of the state of New Mexico.

Early years and political advancement

John Simms attended the New Mexico Military Institute , which is part of the University of New Mexico , until 1937 . He then studied law at Yale University until 1940 . During the Second World War he rose in the US Army from simple soldier to lieutenant colonel. After the war he worked as a lawyer. He was also involved in cattle breeding.

Between 1947 and 1949, Simms was an MP in the New Mexico House of Representatives . There he acted as speaker of the house. Between 1950 and 1954 he was also on a commission for the revision of state laws. On November 2, 1954, he was elected as the Democratic Party candidate for the new governor of his state, with 57:43 percent of the vote against the Republican Alvin Stockton.

Governor of New Mexico

Simms began his two-year term on January 1, 1955 as the successor to Edwin L. Mechem . During his reign, industrial production was promoted in New Mexico. At that time, many jobs were also created in this state by the federal authorities. Even so, Simms failed to get confirmed in 1956. On January 1, 1957, he had to hand over his position to his predecessor Edwin Mechem.

After the end of his governorship, Simms withdrew from politics. He continued to devote himself to his business interests and worked primarily as a lawyer and rancher. John Simms died in April 1975. He was married to Ruth Reynolds, with whom he had six children.

Web links

• John Simms in the National Governors Association (English)
• John F. Simms in the database of Find a Grave (English)