Richard Riley

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Richard Wilson Riley

Richard Wilson Riley (born January 2, 1933 in Greenville County , South Carolina ) is an American politician . From 1979 to 1987 he was Governor of South Carolina and US Secretary of Education under President Bill Clinton .

Early years and political advancement

Richard Riley graduated from Furman University in 1954 . He then served two years in the US Navy as an intelligence officer on board a minesweeper. After returning to civilian life, he studied law and initially served as an advisor to the US Senate Legal Committee for a year. He then joined the family's law practice in Greenville and Simpsonville. His political career began in 1962 when he was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives . He was there between 1963 and 1966. He spent the next few years between 1967 and 1976 in the Senate of his state. For the upcoming gubernatorial elections in 1978 he applied for the nomination of his party, which he received after internal party discussions. He won the November 1978 election with 61.4 percent of the vote against his Republican rival Edward Young.

Governor of south carolina

Richard Riley took up his new office on January 10, 1979. After a constitutional reform in 1980, he became the first governor of his country to serve a second four-year term under the new constitution. Riley was governor for a total of eight years. During his tenure, the South Carolina Nuclear Control Authority was established to oversee the transportation of nuclear waste. This was a response to the nuclear accident of Three Mile Iceland in Pennsylvania . In 1983, the first black citizen in the 20th century was elected to the country's Senate. In 1985 the first black judge on the South Carolina Supreme Court followed. Richard Riley was particularly committed to environmental protection and education.

Further career

At the end of his tenure as governor, Riley was named Secretary of Education by President Bill Clinton. He held this office during the entire Clinton administration until January 2001. He has since returned to practice as a lawyer. He is also a curator of Carnegie Corporation, a professor at Furman University, and an advisor to the Richard W. Riley Institute of Government, Politics and Leadership . Richard Riley is married to Ann Riley, with whom he has four children.

literature

  • Governors of the American States, Commonwealths and Territories. National Governors' Conference, 1986.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Riley, Richard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Riley, Richard Wilson (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH January 2, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH Greenville County , South Carolina