Lee S. Dreyfus

Lee Sherman Dreyfus (* 20th June 1926 in Milwaukee , Wisconsin ; †  2. January 2008 in Waukesha , Wisconsin) was an American politician of the Republican Party and from 1979 to 1983 the 40th  Governor of the State of Wisconsin.

Early years and career advancement

Lee Dreyfus attended Washington High School in Milwaukee. He then joined the US Navy , where he dealt with electronics. He was also responsible for repairs to radar systems. During the Second World War he remained in the Navy and was deployed in the Pacific. After the war he continued his education at the University of Wisconsin at Madison . Here he studied communication until 1957.

After completing his studies, Dreyfus became manager of the radio station at Wayne State University in Detroit and helped set up its own faculty for communication at that university. In 1962 he returned to Madison and became the manager of a television company. He also received a professorship for rhetoric and media presence ( Professor of Speech and Broadcasting ). He later became dean of the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point .

Political career

Dreyfus was originally a member of the Democratic Party . Dissatisfied with their policies, he switched to the Republicans in 1978. In the same year he ran as his new party's candidate for governor of Wisconsin. His candidacy was controversial within the party and the party leaders opted for another candidate. Dreyfus managed to win the primaries against his competitor Bob Kasten through a clever pre-election campaign and with the help of the media . Then he also managed to beat the democratic incumbent Martin J. Schreiber in the actual elections.

Dreyfus began his four-year term on January 1, 1979. During this time he lowered taxes and reformed the administration. In 1982 Dreyfus became the first state governor to protect homosexuals from discrimination by law. The negative effects of his tax cuts soon became apparent. The budget deficit grew and the inflation and unemployment rates rose again. In 1982 the budget deficit was $ 1 billion and the unemployment rate was 12%. This is probably one of the reasons why Dreyfus decided not to run again in 1982. Tony Earl was elected to succeed him.

Another résumé

Between 1983 and 1984 he worked in a senior position at an insurance company in Stevens Point. In 1985 he founded a consulting company and between 1990 and 2007 also published articles in a weekly magazine. Lee Dreyfus died in January 2008. He and his wife Joyce had two children.

Web links

• Lee S. Dreyfus in the database of the National Governors Association (English)
• Lee S. Dreyfus in the database of Find a Grave (English)