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{{Short description|Governor of California from 1959 to 1967}} | |||
{{about|the California politician}} | {{about|the California politician}} | ||
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}} | |||
{{Infobox Governor | |||
{{Infobox officeholder | |||
|birthname = Edmund Gerald Brown | |||
| |
| birthname = Edmund Gerald Brown | ||
| |
| image = Edmund G. Brown Sr. Portrait.jpg | ||
| |
| caption = Brown {{circa}} 1963 | ||
| |
| order = 32nd | ||
| office = Governor of California | |||
|term_start = January 5, 1959 | |||
| |
| term_start = January 5, 1959 | ||
| term_end = January 2, 1967 | |||
|lieutenant = ] | |||
| |
| lieutenant = ] | ||
| |
| predecessor = ] | ||
| |
| successor = ] | ||
| |
| order2 = 23rd | ||
| office2 = Attorney General of California | |||
|term_start2 = January 8, 1951 | |||
| |
| term_start2 = January 8, 1951 | ||
| term_end2 = January 5, 1959 | |||
|governor2 = ]<br />] | |||
| governor2 = ]<br>Goodwin Knight | |||
|predecessor2 = ] | |||
| |
| predecessor2 = ] | ||
| successor2 = ] | |||
|birth_date = {{Birth date|1905|4|21|mf=y}} | |||
| |
| office3 = 21st ] | ||
| term_start3 = 1944 | |||
|death_date = {{Death date and age|1996|2|16|1905|4|21|mf=y}} | |||
| term_end3 = 1950 | |||
|death_place = ] | |||
| predecessor3 = ] | |||
|resting_place = ] | |||
| successor3 = ] | |||
|party = ] <small>(1932 and after)</small> | |||
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1905|4|21|mf=y}} | |||
|otherparty = ] <small>(before 1932)</small> | |||
| |
| birth_place = San Francisco, California, U.S. | ||
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1996|2|16|1905|4|21|mf=y}} | |||
|children = Barbara Layne <br> Cynthia Arden <br> ] <br> ] | |||
| death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |||
|profession = ] | |||
| |
| resting_place = ] | ||
| party = ] (1932–1996) | |||
|alma_mater = ] | |||
| otherparty = ] (before 1932) | |||
| spouse = {{marriage|]|1930}} | |||
| children = 4, including ] and ] | |||
| profession = Lawyer | |||
| alma_mater = ] ] | |||
}} | }} | ||
'''Edmund Gerald''' "'''Pat'''" '''Brown''' (April 21, 1905 – February 16, 1996) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 32nd ] from 1959 to 1967. His first elected office was as district attorney for San Francisco, and he was later elected ] in 1950, before becoming the state's governor after the ]. | |||
'''Edmund Gerald “Pat” Brown, Sr.''' (April 21, 1905 – February 16, 1996) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 32nd ] from 1959 to 1967. Born in San Francisco, Brown had an early interest in speaking and politics; while never completing an undergraduate degree, he earned a law degree in 1927, and subsequently began legal practice. As district attorney for San Francisco, he was elected Attorney General of California in 1950 before becoming the state's Governor in 1959. As Governor, Brown embarked on massive projects building important infrastructure and redefined the state's ] system. While running twice for President in 1960 and 1964, finishing second and first in the primaries, respectively, he was never a serious contender in the national conventions. While losing his bid for a third term in 1966 to future President ], his legacy earns him regard as the builder of modern California.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url = http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/19/big-idea-california-is-so-over.html|title = The Daily Beast|date = |accessdate = |website = |publisher = |last = |first = }}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdpujrm-72Y|title = California State of Mind: The Legacy of Pat Brown|date = |accessdate = |website = |publisher = |last = |first = }}</ref> His son, ], was and is the 34th and 39th Governor of California, and his daughter, ], was the 29th ]. | |||
Born in San Francisco, Brown had an early interest in speaking and politics. He skipped college and he earned an ] law degree in 1927. In his first term as governor, Brown delivered on major legislation, including a tax increase and the ]. The ] was a major and highly complex achievement. He also pushed through ] legislation. In a second term, troubles mounted, including the defeat of a fair housing law (]), the ], the ], and internal battles among Democrats over support or opposition to the ]. He lost the ] for a third term to future president ]; his legacy has since earned him regard as the builder of modern California.<ref name=":1">{{cite news|url = http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/04/19/big-idea-california-is-so-over.html|title = The Daily Beast|date = April 19, 2015|last = Kotkin|first = Joel}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite web|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdpujrm-72Y|title = California State of Mind: The Legacy of Pat Brown|website = Pat Brown Documentary|access-date=July 28, 2022|via=YouTube}}</ref> | |||
His son ] was the 34th and 39th governor of California, as well as the 31st attorney general of California, holding two offices he once held. His daughter, ], was the 29th ]. | |||
==Background== | ==Background== | ||
Brown was born in |
Brown was born in San Francisco, California, one of four children of Ida (née Schuckman) and Edmund Joseph Brown. His father came from an Irish Catholic family, with his grandfather Joseph immigrating from ], Ireland. His mother Ida was from a German Protestant family.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.redlands.edu/bulldog-blog/2018/november-2018/award-winning-journalist-discusses-brown-family-california-politics/#:~:text=Pat%E2%80%99s%20mother%2C%20Ida%20Schuckman%20Brown%2C%20visited%20San%20Francisco,she%20was%20a%2014-year-old%20prodigy%20at%20UC%20Berkeley.|title=Award-winning journalist discusses Brown family, California politics | University of Redlands}}</ref><ref name="nyt obit">{{cite news |last=Reinhold|first=Robert|title=Edmund G. Brown Is Dead at 90; He Led California in Boom Years |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9803EFDC1339F93BA25751C0A960958260&sec=&spon=&scp=2&sq=%22pat+brown%22&st=cse&pagewanted=all |access-date=November 14, 2010|newspaper=The New York Times |date=February 18, 1996}}</ref><ref>Ethan Rarick, ''California Rising: The Life and Times of Pat Brown'' (2005) pp. 8, 30.</ref> He acquired the nickname "Pat" during his school years; the nickname was a reference to his ]–like oratory. When he was 12 and selling ] on street corners, he would end his spiel with, "Give me liberty, or give me death."<ref>{{YouTube|O7Fdd9RfvYk}}</ref> | ||
Brown was a |
Brown was a debate champion as a member of the ] at San Francisco's ], where he held twelve offices of student government; he graduated from Lowell in 1923. Rather than pursue an undergraduate degree, he instead worked in his father's cigar store, which doubled as a gambling shop. He studied law at night, while working part-time for attorney Milton Schmitt, receiving an ] degree from ] in spring 1927. After passing the California bar exam the following fall, he began full-time employment in Schmitt's office.<ref>Rarick (2005) pp. 15, 17.</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title = The Elusive Eden: A New History of California|last = Rice|first = Richard B.|publisher = McGraw-Hill|year = 2012|location = New York, NY}}</ref> | ||
Brown ran as a ] candidate for the ] in 1928, but lost; he moved to the ] in 1934, as the ] had made him lose confidence in the Republican Party. |
Brown ran as a ] candidate for the ] in 1928, but lost badly; he moved to the ] in 1934, as the ] had made him lose confidence in the pro-business Republican Party. He quickly became a ], and an active party participant. His second attempt at election to public office came in 1939, running for ] against ], an incumbent of twenty-two years, who beat him handily.<ref name="nyt obit"/><ref name=":0" /> | ||
==District attorney== | |||
Four years after his defeat, Brown ran for district attorney again in 1943 with the slogan "Crack down on crime, elect Brown this time." His victory over Brady was decisive, coming to the surprise of San Francisco politicians, as well as bookmakers who had put 5 to 1 odds against his election.<ref name=":0" /> He was reelected to the office in 1947, and after seven years in office, received the support of Governor ] He emulated the course followed by Warren when the Governor himself was the Alameda County district attorney.<ref name=":0" /> While his actions against gambling, corruption, and juvenile delinquency brought confidence to his office, Brown also sided on the controversial, with his vocal opposition against the ], as well as efforts to deport ].<ref name=":0" /> In 1949, he raided ]'s elegant San Francisco ].<ref>, 19 December 1999</ref> | |||
] | |||
Four years after his defeat, Brown ran for district attorney again in 1943 with the slogan "Crack down on crime, elect Brown this time." His victory over Brady was decisive, coming to the surprise of San Francisco politicians, as well as bookmakers who had put 5 to 1 odds against his election. He was reelected to the office in 1947, and after seven years in office, received the support of Republican Governor ]. He emulated the course followed by Warren when the Governor himself was the Alameda County district attorney. His actions against ], ], and ] brought attention to his office.<ref>Rarick (2005) pp 34–45.</ref> | |||
In 1946, as the Democratic nominee, Brown lost the race for ] to Los Angeles County District Attorney |
In 1946, as the Democratic nominee, Brown lost the race for ] to Los Angeles County District Attorney ]. Running again in 1950, he won election as Attorney General and was re-elected in 1954. As Attorney General, he was the only Democrat to win statewide election in California.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pawel |first1=Miriam |title=The Browns of California |date=2018 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |location=New York, NY |page=66}}</ref> | ||
== First term as governor, 1959–1963 == | |||
==Governor of California (1959–1967)== | |||
In the ], he was the Democratic nominee for governor, running on a campaign of "responsible liberalism," with support for labor, and forcing the ballot name change of ] from "Right-to-Work" to "Employer and Employee Relations," whereas Brown's opponent campaigned for such right-to-work laws as Proposition 18 provided.<ref name=":0" /> In the general election, Brown defeated Republican U.S. Senator ] with a near three-fifths majority, Proposition 18 and other anti-labor ballot measures were voted down, and Democrats were elected to a majority in both houses of the legislature, and to all statewide offices, excepting Secretary of State.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
], on September 28, 1963]] | |||
] | |||
In 1958, he was the Democratic nominee for Governor, running a campaign of "responsible liberalism", with support for labor, and forcing the ballot name change of ] from "Right-to-Work" to "Employer and Employee Relations", whereas Brown's opponent campaigned for such right-to-work laws as Proposition 18 provided.<ref name=":0" /> In the general election, Brown defeated Republican U.S. Senator ] with a near three-fifths majority, Proposition 18 and other anti-labor ballot measures were voted down, and Democrats were elected to a majority in both houses of the legislature, and to all statewide offices, excepting Secretary of State.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
Brown was known for his cheerful personality, and his championing of building an infrastructure to meet the needs of the rapidly growing state. As journalist ] reports: "With a jubilant Mr. Brown officiating, California commemorated the moment it became the nation's largest state, in 1962, with a church-bell-ringing, four-day celebration. He was the boom-boom governor for a boom-boom time: championing highways, universities and, most consequential, a sprawling water network to feed the explosion of ] and development in the dry reaches of ] and ]."<ref>Adam Nagourney, "Brown's Arid California, Thanks Partly to His Father," </ref> Brown appointed ] as chief of staff as a reward for his enormously energetic and effective row last campaign manager. Bert Levitt, a Republican friend, was named director of finance to draw up a state budget. The role of press secretary went to reporter ]. Further down the ladder, Brown cleaned house, replacing all of Knight's political appointees. His team worked hard in preparation for the governor's inauguration. Although he was basically a moderate, Brown reached out to the powerful left wing in his party by emphasizing the word “liberal” repeatedly, He proclaimed: "Offered government by retreat, the people preferred progress." Newcomers were arriving at 500,000 a year, and there was no time to be lost in responding to the needs they created.<ref>Rarick (2005), 113–115.</ref> | |||
Brown was known for his ebullient personality, and his championing of building an infrastructure to meet the needs of the rapidly growing state. As journalist ] reports: | |||
:With a jubilant Mr. Brown officiating, California commemorated the moment it became the nation’s largest state, in 1962, with a church-bell-ringing, four-day celebration. He was the boom-boom governor for a boom-boom time: championing highways, universities and, most consequential, a sprawling water network to feed the explosion of agriculture and development in the dry reaches of central and Southern California.<ref> Adam Nagourney, "Brown’s Arid California, Thanks Partly to His Father," </ref> | |||
He set up a Fair Employment Practices Commission that helped ] break through the informal barriers that it kept them out of white collar positions. Numerous other reforms were passed, largely thanks to cooperation with the Democratic leaders in the state legislature, including ] in the Senate, and Bill Munnell and ] in the assembly.<ref>Rarick (2005), 125–127.</ref> | |||
=== Tax increase === | |||
Brown wanted to expand state services but first had to end the deficit and obtain enough revenue for his plans. Tax increases were headed by the ], where the top rate went from 6% to 7%, with new exemptions for the poor. There was an increase in the profits taxes paid by banks and corporations, a tax on cigarettes, beer, and betting, as well as a severance tax on oil and natural gas. A few compromises were made, but in the end, Brown got his money for expansion of the state budget.<ref>Rarick (2005), 120–121, 134.</ref> | |||
] | |||
=== California State Water Project === | === California State Water Project === | ||
{{main|California State Water Project}} | |||
With his administration beginning in 1959, Brown set in motion a series of actions whose magnitude was unseen since the governorship of ].<ref name=":0" /> The ] brought millions of newcomers to the state which, along with the ], severely strained California's water resources, especially in dry Southern California. This began the ], whose objective was to address the fact that one half of the state's people lived in a region containing one percent of the state's natural supply of water.<ref name=":0" /> Much of the state's extant water was controlled by regional bodies, and the federal government. These federally controlled areas were under the jurisdiction of the ], which was considering the implementation of a "160-acre principle", a policy contained within the ], limiting delivery of federally subsidized water to parcels equal to the size of a homestead, which was 160 acres. This brought strong opposition from the agricultural industry, and as such would require significant splintering of existent land holdings. To relieve this threat to the agricultural economy, Brown and other state leaders began the State Water Project, whose master plan included a vast system of reservoirs, aqueducts, and pipelines powered by pump stations and electrical generating plants to transport the water statewide. This included the capture of the ] runoff, redirecting the seabound water through the ], not only irrigating the arid desert regions, but also providing Southern California, particularly ], with the water required to sustain expansions in population and industry.<ref name=":0" /> The entire project was projected to take sixty years, costing $13 billion, nearly $104 billion in 2015 dollars.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/|title = US Inflation Calculator}}</ref> | |||
Opposition to the State Water Project was immediate, especially with ] users worrying about ] which had already been a concern without factoring in redirection of outward freshwater flow. Residents of the Bay Area and elsewhere in Northern California were concerned about the increase in water draw the South might demand as populations expanded. While Southern support for the project was clear, the ] worried that the project did not ensure permanent rights to Northern water. This led the legislature to amend the plan, prohibiting the state's southern water rights from being rescinded, clearing any remaining reservations from the state's southern water authorities. Governor Brown was a staunch supporter of the plan, energetically opposing critics and seeking solutions. He lobbied Congress to exempt California from the 160-acre rule, lauding the benefit of employment and progress to the state's northern and southern residents, calling for an end to the north–south rivalry. Brown also reduced his introductory bond issuance from $11 billion to $1.75 billion, beginning a television campaign to appeal to residents.<ref name=":0" /> Governor Brown insisted on the Burns-Porter Act which sent the bond issue to a referendum; the 1960 vote saw ] as the sole Northern California county not voting against the measure. However, the growth in Southern California's population led to the plan's adoption.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
With his administration beginning in 1959, Brown set in motion a series of actions whose magnitude was unseen since the governorship of ].<ref name=":0" /> The economic expansion following World War II brought millions of newcomers to the state which, along with the state's cyclical droughts, severely strained California's water resources, especially in dry Southern California. This began the ], whose objective was to address the fact that one half of the state's people lived in a region containing one percent of the state's natural supply of water.<ref name=":0" /> Much of the state's extant water was controlled by regional bodies, and the federal government. These federally controlled areas were under the jurisdiction of the ], which was considering the implementation of a "160-acre principle", a policy contained within the ], limiting delivery of federally subsidized water to parcels equal to the size of a homestead, which was 160 acres. This brought strong opposition from the agricultural industry, as such would require significant splintering of existent land holdings. To alleviate this threat to the agricultural economy, Brown and other state leaders began the State Water Project, whose master plan included a vast system of reservoirs, aqueducts, and pipelines powered by pump stations and electrical generating plants to transport the water around the state. This included the capture of ] runoff, redirecting the sea-bound water through the ], not only irrigating the arid desert regions, but also providing Southern California, especially Los Angeles County, with the water required to sustain growths in population and industry.<ref name=":0" /> The entire project was projected to take sixty years, costing $13 billion, nearly $104 billion in 2015 dollars.<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/|title = US Inflation Calculator|date = |accessdate = |website = |publisher = |last = |first = }}</ref> | |||
] at the White House in April 1961]] | |||
=== Political reforms === | |||
Opposition to the State Water Project was immediate, especially with Sacramento River Delta users worrying about ] which was already a concern without factoring in redirection of outward freshwater flow. Bay Area and other Northern California residents worried about the increase in water draw the South might demand as populations grew. While Southern support for the project was clear, the ] worried that the project did not ensure permanent rights to Northern water. This lead the legislature to amend the plan, prohibiting the state's southern water rights from being rescinded, clearing any remaining reservations from the state's southern water authorities. Governor Brown was a staunch supporter of the plan, energetically opposing critics and seeking solutions. He lobbied Congress to exempt California from the 160 acre rule, lauding the benefit of employment and progress to the state's northern and southern residents, calling for an end to the north-south rivalry. Brown also reduced his introductory bond issuance from $11 billion to $1.75 billion, beginning a television campaign to appeal to residents.<ref name=":0" /> Governor Brown insisted on the Burns-Porter Act which sent the bond issue to a referendum; the 1960 vote saw Butte County as the sole Northern California county not voting against the measure. However, the growth in Southern California's population lead to the plan's adoption.<ref name=":0" />] at the White House in April 1961]] | |||
The first year of Brown's administration saw the abolition of the cross-filing system that had enabled candidates to file with multiple political parties at once while running for office. The 1964 ] decision '']'' declared unconstitutional California's "federal plan", which had allocated the apportionment of state senators along county lines, as opposed to population-based districts. Now, while the City and County of San Francisco had one state senator, Los Angeles County received thirteen; this massive shift in the legislature's composition led Brown, along with Assembly Speaker ], to change the way California government operated. | |||
=== Political Reforms === | |||
In 1962, the Constitutional Revision Commission was established. It operated until 1974, proposing changes to the state's ], decreasing length and complexity by nearly fifty percent through ballot propositions recommended by the commission, of which seventy-five percent were approved by voters.<ref name=":0" /> Among the enacted reforms were removal of the 120-day limit on legislative sessions, increased legislators' salaries, and a reduction in the percentage of signatures required to place propositions on the ballot. Governor Brown insisted on Unruh's reforms that abolished various government agencies and consolidated others.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
=== Structural reform of the executive branch === | |||
Upon taking office, Brown realized that the state executive branch had grown to an unmanageable level of complexity because of the legislature's unfortunate habit of solving problems by creating new boards and commissions directly responsible to the governor—approximately 360 boards, commissions, and agencies all reported directly to the governor. In February 1961, Brown proposed a massive reorganization plan for the state government, which included the creation of several so-called "super-agencies" (originally spelled with a hyphen) to greatly reduce the number of direct reports to the governor.<ref name="Blanchard">{{cite news |last1=Blanchard |first1=Robert |title=Brown Criticized for His Super-Agency Proposal |work=Los Angeles Times |date=February 14, 1961 |page=1}} Available through ] Historical Newspapers.</ref> In September 1961, Brown appointed the secretaries of the first four superagencies (of eight then planned).<ref name="Gillam">{{cite news |last1=Gillam |first1=Jerry |title=Brown Picks 8-Member Cabinet: Four Named to Head New State Super-Agencies |work=Los Angeles Times |date=October 1, 1961 |page=1}} Available through ] Historical Newspapers.</ref> The superagencies continue to exist today as part of the long-term legacy of the Brown administration, although there are currently only seven, and there are several Cabinet-level departments outside of them.<ref name="Van Vechten">{{cite book |last1=Van Vechten |first1=Renée B. |title=California Politics: A Primer |date=2011 |publisher=SAGE |location=Los Angeles |isbn=9781452203065 |page=63 |edition=2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tatzWQscKmcC&pg=PA63 |access-date=February 25, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Lawrence">{{cite book |last1=Lawrence |first1=David G. |last2=Cummins |first2=Jeffrey |title=California: The Politics of Diversity |date=2019 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |location=Lanham |isbn=9781538129302|page=167 |edition=10th |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FwmkDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA167}}</ref> | |||
=== Education === | === Education === | ||
Californians were energized by the need to catch up with the ], which had taken the lead in technology by launching the world's first ] ]. Brown signed the ] in 1960.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://archive.org/details/californiarising00rari|title=California rising : the life and times of Pat Brown|first=Ethan|last=Rarick|date=June 10, 2005|publisher=Berkeley : University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-23627-1|via=Internet Archive}}</ref> This new system defined the roles of the ], the ], and ] systems, each with different goals, objectives, offerings, and student composition.<ref>, John Aubrey Douglass, Stanford, Cal.: Stanford University Press, 2000, pages 308 and following.</ref> It provided a model for other states to develop their own similar systems. Governor Brown sought free higher education for California students, which the Master Plan provided. His successor, Ronald Reagan, would change this policy, insisting on student tuition.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kahn |first1=Jeffery |title=Ronald Reagan launched political career using the Berkeley campus as a target |url=https://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/06/08_reagan.shtml |website=UC Berkeley News |access-date=February 13, 2019}}</ref> With the passage of ] in 1978, state education funding fell further, straining Brown's Master Plan due to lack of property tax funds.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Penner|first1=Gloria|last2=Burke|first2=Megan|title=Prop 13's Impact On Schools|url=https://www.kpbs.org/news/education/2010/03/26/prop-13s-impact-schools|website=KPBS News|access-date=July 30, 2024}}</ref> | |||
=== |
=== Re-election of 1962 against Richard Nixon === | ||
] | ] | ||
Brown's first term as governor was very successful, but failings on important matters to him were costly. Agriculture and special interests defeated his best efforts to pass a $1.25 per hour ], and Brown's opposition to capital punishment was overruled by the practice being supported statewide. Brown was a supporter of Senator ] in the ], but Brown's California delegation to the ] did not abide by his support for Kennedy, which nearly cost Kennedy the nomination. Brown's opponent in 1962 was former Vice President ]. Having narrowly lost the presidency to Kennedy in 1960, Nixon was not interested in the governorship of his native California other than as a path to the White House.<ref name=":0" /> Unfamiliar with California politics and matters, Nixon resorted to accusing Brown of 'softness' against communism, which was not a successful platform. In the ], Brown was reelected, by a 52%-47% margin of victory, whereupon Nixon famously held his self-proclaimed ] (he would eventually become president in 1969). | |||
== Second term as governor, 1963–1967 == | |||
The legislature passed the ], which provided that landlords could not deny people housing because of ethnicity, religion, sex, marital status, physical handicap, or familial status. This new law brought a slew of lawsuits against the state government, and lead to ], which overturned the Rumford Act with nearly two-thirds in favor. The U.S. Supreme Court decision of '']'' upheld the California Supreme Court's ruling that the Rumford Act was unconstitutional. The law's passage saw all federal housing funds to be cut off. | |||
The legislature passed the ], which provided that ]s could not deny people housing because of ethnicity, religion, sex, marital status, physical handicap, or familial status.<ref name="Joseph2006">{{cite book|author=Peniel E. Joseph|author-link=Peniel E. Joseph|title=The Black Power Movement: Rethinking the Civil Rights-Black Power Era|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jnuI5c9lUEwC&pg=PA47|access-date=January 8, 2013|year=2006|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-0-415-94596-7|pages=47–}}</ref> This new law brought a slew of lawsuits against the state government, and led to ], which overturned the Rumford Act with nearly two-thirds in favor.<ref>{{cite book|title=American Babylon: Race and the Struggle for Postwar Oakland|author=Robert O. Self|page=168|year=2003|publisher=Princeton University Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gK3jFVtUnxgC&pg=PA167|isbn=0-691-07026-1}}</ref> The ] decision of '']'' () upheld the ]'s ruling that the proposition overturning the Rumford Act was unconstitutional. | |||
==== Watts Riots ==== | |||
On August 11, 1965, the ] erupted in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, lasting for one week. On the evening of the same day, Marquette Frye was pulled over on suspicion of driving while under the influence; a field sobriety test was administered, he was arrested, and the police officer called for the impounding of his vehicle. When his mother, Rena Price was brought to the scene by his brother, a scuffle began, and soon crowds built, snowballing the incident into full-blown riots. By August 13, the third day of riots, Governor Brown ordered 2,300 ] to Watts, which increased to 3,900 by the night's end. By the conflict's end, $40 million worth of damage was inflicted, and 1,000 building destroyed. This incident began massive protests and riots throughout the state which, along with developments of the Vietnam War, began Brown's decline in popularity. | |||
Brown's |
Brown's terms in office were marked by a dramatic increase in water-resources development. The ], built as part of the program, was named for him. He also presided over the implementation of the California Master Plan for Higher Education, fair employment legislation, a state economic development commission, and a consumers' council. He sponsored some 40 major proposals, gaining passage of 35.<ref name=":0" /> | ||
=== Watts riots === | |||
On August 11, 1965, the ] erupted in the ], lasting for a week. On the evening of the same day, ] was pulled over on suspicion of driving while under the influence; a field sobriety test was administered, he was arrested, and the police officer called for the impounding of his vehicle. When his mother, Rena Price, was brought to the scene by his brother, a scuffle began, and soon crowds built, snowballing the incident into full-blown riots.<ref>{{cite news|last=Szymanski|first=Michael|title=How Legacy of the Watts Riot Consumed, Ruined Man's Life|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel|date=August 5, 1990|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1990/08/05/how-legacy-of-the-watts-riot-consumed-ruined-mans-life/|access-date=June 22, 2013|archive-date=December 6, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131206012123/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1990-08-05/news/9008031131_1_frye-riots-in-american-rights-leaders|url-status=live}}</ref> By August 13, the third day of riots, Governor Brown ordered 2,300 ] to Watts, which increased to 3,900 by the night's end. By the conflict's end, 1,000 people were wounded and 34 died, $40 million worth of damage was inflicted, and 1,000 buildings destroyed. This incident began massive protests and riots throughout the state which, along with developments of the Vietnam War, began Brown's decline in popularity.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
During his two terms in office, Brown commuted 23 death sentences, signing the first commutation on his second day in office.<ref name="NYT 1999">{{cite news |last=Lewis |first=Anthony |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE2DE1F3CF933A1575BC0A96F948260|title=He was their last resort|work=The New York Times |date=August 20, 1989 |accessdate=November 14, 2010}}</ref> One of his more notable commutations was the death sentence of ], whose execution in the gas chamber for first-degree murder had been postponed because of an attempted ] some hours before it was scheduled to take place. After Walker recovered, his execution was postponed while he was being restored to mental competency. After Walker was declared sane in 1961, Brown commuted Walker's death sentence to life without the possibility of ]. Walker was later paroled after the California Supreme Court held that Governor Brown could not legally deny a prisoner the right to parole in a death-sentence commutation. Another prisoner whose death sentence was commuted by Brown committed at least one murder after being paroled.<ref name="NYT 1999">{{cite news|last=Lewis|first=Anthony|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE2DE1F3CF933A1575BC0A96F948260|title=He was their last resort|work=The New York Times|date=August 20, 1989|accessdate=November 14, 2010}}</ref> | |||
=== Capital punishment === | |||
While Governor, Brown's attitude toward the death penalty was often ambivalent, if not arbitrary. An ardent supporter of ], he was more inclined to let convicts go to the gas chamber if they had killed with guns than with other weapons.<ref name="Brown, Edmund 1989" /> He later admitted that he had denied clemency in one death penalty case principally because the legislator who represented the district in which the murder occurred held a swing vote on farmworker legislation supported by Brown, and had told Brown that his district "would go up in smoke" if the governor commuted the man's sentence.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> | |||
During both terms in office, Brown commuted 23 ], signing the first commutation on his second day in office.<ref name="NYT 1999">{{cite news |last=Lewis |first=Anthony |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE2DE1F3CF933A1575BC0A96F948260|title=He was their last resort|work=The New York Times |date=August 20, 1989 |access-date=November 14, 2010}}</ref> One of his more notable commutations was the death sentence of ], whose execution in the ] for ] had been postponed because of an attempted suicide some hours before it was scheduled to take place. After Walker recovered, his execution was postponed while he was being restored to ]. After Walker was declared sane in 1961, Brown commuted Walker's death sentence to life without the possibility of parole. Walker was later paroled after the California Supreme Court held that the governor could not legally deny a prisoner the right to parole in a death-sentence commutation. Another prisoner whose death sentence was commuted by Brown committed at least one murder after being paroled.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> | |||
While governor, Brown's attitude toward capital punishment was often ambivalent, if not arbitrary. An ardent supporter of ], he was more inclined to let convicts go to the gas chamber if they had killed with guns than with other weapons.<ref name="Brown, Edmund 1989" /> He later admitted that he denied clemency in one capital case principally since the legislator who represented the district in which the murder occurred held a swing vote on farmworker legislation supported by Brown, and had told Brown that his district "would go up in smoke" if the governor commuted the man's sentence.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> | |||
In contrast, Governor Brown allowed 36 executions, including the highly controversial cases of ] in 1960 and ]; she was the last woman put to death before a national moratorium was instituted.<ref name="NYT 1999">{{cite news |last=Lewis |first=Anthony |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE2DE1F3CF933A1575BC0A96F948260|title=He was their last resort |work=The New York Times |date=August 20, 1989 |accessdate=November 14, 2010}}</ref> Though he had supported the death penalty while serving as district attorney, as Attorney General, and when first elected Governor,<ref name="Brown, Edmund 1989">Brown, Edmund (Pat) with Adler, Dick, ''Public Justice, Private Mercy: A Governor's Education on Death Row'', New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, ISBN 1-55584-253-4, ISBN 978-1-55584-253-6 (1989)</ref> he later became an opponent of it.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/uchistory/archives_exhibits/masterplan/bios.html|title=The History and Future of the California Master Plan for Higher Education|work=berkeley.edu}}</ref> | |||
In contrast, Governor Brown approved 36 executions, including the highly controversial cases of ] in 1960 and ] in 1962; she was the last female put to death before a national moratorium was instituted.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> Though he had supported capital punishment while serving as district attorney, as attorney general, and when first elected governor,<ref name="Brown, Edmund 1989">Brown, Edmund (Pat) with Adler, Dick, ''Public Justice, Private Mercy: A Governor's Education on Death Row'', New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, {{ISBN|1-55584-253-4}}, {{ISBN|978-1-55584-253-6}} (1989)</ref> he later became an opponent of it.<ref name="nyt obit"/> | |||
During the Chessman case, Brown proposed that the death penalty be abolished, but the proposal failed.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> His ] successor, ], was a firm death penalty supporter and oversaw the last execution in California in 1967, prior to the US Supreme Court ruling that it was unconstitutional in '']'' (1972).] | |||
During the Chessman case, Brown proposed that ], but the proposal failed.<ref name="NYT 1999"/> His ] successor, ], was a firm supporter of capital punishment and oversaw, in 1967, the last execution in California prior to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that it was unconstitutional in '']'' (). | |||
===Campaign for third term=== | ===Campaign for third term=== | ||
Brown's decision to seek a third term as governor |
Brown's decision to seek a third term as governor, violating an earlier promise not to do so, hurt his popularity. His sagging popularity was evidenced by a tough battle in the Democratic primary, normally not a concern for an incumbent. Los Angeles Mayor ] received nearly forty percent of the primary vote while Brown only received fifty-two, a very low number for an incumbent in a primary election.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=95276|title=Our Campaigns - CA Governor - D Primary Race - Jun 07, 1966|access-date=February 13, 2019}}</ref> | ||
] | |||
The Republicans seized upon Brown's increasing unpopularity by nominating a well-known and charismatic political outsider, actor and union leader ]. With ] and ] working tirelessly behind the scenes and Reagan trumpeting his law-and-order campaign message, Reagan received almost two thirds of the primary vote over ], the moderate Republican former mayor of San Francisco; his push towards the general election held great momentum. At first, Brown ran a low-key campaign, stating that running the state was his biggest priority, but later began campaigning on the record of his eight years as governor. As Reagan's lead in the polls increased, Brown began to panic and made a ] when he told a group of school children that an actor, ], had killed ], alluding to Reagan's being an actor.<ref>{{Citation | last1=Reagan | first1=Michael | last2=Denney | first2=Jim| title=The New Reagan Revolution: How Ronald Reagan's Principles Can Restore America's Greatness | year=2010 | pages=111 | isbn=978-0-312-64454-3}}</ref> The comparison of Reagan to Booth did not go over well, furthering the decline of Brown's campaign. | |||
The ] seized upon Brown's increasing unpopularity by nominating a well-known and charismatic political outsider, actor and union leader ]. With ] and ] working tirelessly behind the scenes and Reagan trumpeting his law-and-order campaign message, Reagan received almost two thirds of the primary vote over ], the moderate Republican former mayor of San Francisco; his push towards the general election held great momentum. At first, Brown ran a low-key campaign, stating that running the state was his biggest priority, but later began campaigning on the record of his eight years as governor. As Reagan's lead in the polls increased, Brown began to panic and made a serious ] when he ran a television commercial in which he told a group of schoolchildren that his opponent was an actor, and reminded them "it was ] who ].<ref name="Reagan">{{Citation | last1=Reagan | first1=Michael | last2=Denney | first2=Jim | title=The New Reagan Revolution: How Ronald Reagan's Principles Can Restore America's Greatness | year=2010 | pages= | publisher=St. Martin's Publishing |isbn=978-0-312-64454-3 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/newreaganrevolut00reag_0/page/111 }}</ref><ref name = Michaelson>{{cite news|url = https://www.newspapers.com|title = Ex-Governor Brown Led Building Boom|date = February 18, 1996|page = A3, A26–27|last = Michaelson|first = Judith|newspaper = ]|via = ]|url-access = subscription|accessdate = May 27, 2024}}</ref> The comparison of Reagan to John Wilkes Booth did not go over well, furthering the decline of Brown's campaign.<ref name="Reagan" /> | |||
On election day, Reagan was ahead in the polls and favored to win a relatively close election. Brown lost the 1966 election to ] in his second consecutive race against a future ] ]. Reagan won in a landslide; his nearly 1 million vote plurality surprised even his staunchest supporters. Reagan's victory was a dramatic upheaval for an incumbent, whose majority of fifty-eight percent nearly matched that of Brown's own victory in 1958, and Reagan garnered some 990,000 new votes from the larger electorate. | |||
On election day, Reagan was ahead in the polls and favored to win a relatively close election. Brown lost the ] to ] in his second consecutive race against a future ] President. Reagan won in a landslide; his nearly 1 million vote plurality surprised even his staunchest supporters. Reagan's victory against an incumbent was a dramatic upheaval. His majority of nearly fifty-eight percent nearly matched that of Brown's own victory in 1958, and Reagan garnered some 990,000 new votes from the larger electorate.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}} | |||
=== Legacy === | === Legacy === | ||
Although he left office |
Although he left office defeated, Brown's time in office is one which has fared well. Brown was a relatively popular Democrat in what was, at the time, a Republican-leaning state. After his reelection victory over Richard Nixon in 1962, he was ] for ]'s running mate in the ], a position that eventually went to ]. However, Brown's popularity began to sag amidst the civil disorders of the ] and the early ] at ]. His monumental infrastructure projects, building aqueducts, canals, and pump stations, established new fertile lands in the Central Valley; the ] was named after him. During his term, four new ] campuses were built, as well as seven new ] campuses, making the Master Plan's higher education system the largest in the world. During the ] President Richard Nixon considered appointing Brown as ], but the choice was rejected by Attorney General ].<ref>Graff, Garrett M. (2022). ''Watergate: A New History'' (1 ed.). New York: Avid Reader Press. p. 394. {{ISBN|978-1-9821-3916-2}}. {{OCLC|1260107112}}.</ref> | ||
While no person elected Governor of California has been denied a second term since Earl Warren defeated ] in ], Brown's losing bid for a third term to Ronald Reagan was the last time, as of 2022, an incumbent governor lost in the general election (]' loss in the ] was a non-quadrennial election). Today, Governor Brown is widely credited with the creation of modern California.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> | |||
== Personal life == | == Personal life == | ||
] | ] | ||
Brown's wife, Bernice Layne, was a fellow student at Lowell High School, but it was not until the completion of his law degree, and her teaching credential, that they began a courtship. |
Brown's wife, Bernice Layne, was a fellow student at Lowell High School, but it was not until the completion of his law degree, and her teaching credential, that they began a courtship. Following his loss in the Assembly election, he and Bernice eloped in 1930.<ref name=":0" /> They had four children, who were all born in San Francisco: | ||
* Barbara Layne |
* Barbara Layne Brown (born July 13, 1931) | ||
* Cynthia Arden Brown (born October 19, 1933 – died March 29, 2015)<ref>{{cite web|title=Cynthia Kelly Obituary|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/sfgate/obituary.aspx?pid=174537631|website=Legacy.com|access-date=October 22, 2017}}</ref> | |||
* Cynthia Arden Kelly ''née'' Brown (born October 19, 1933) | |||
* ] (born April 7, 1938) | * ] (born April 7, 1938) | ||
* ] (born September 25, 1945) | * ] (born September 25, 1945) | ||
In 1958, as governor-elect, Brown appeared as a guest challenger on the TV panel show '']'' | In 1958, as governor-elect, Brown appeared as a guest challenger on the TV panel show '']''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7Fdd9RfvYk|title=What's My Line? - CA Governor Edmund Brown; Harry Belafonte; Peter Lind Hayes (Nov 16, 1958)|last=What's My Line?|date=February 18, 2014|via=YouTube}}</ref> | ||
After leaving office, Brown returned to the practice of law and also experienced success in business, investing in a company involved with the Indonesian petroleum industry.<ref name = Michaelson/> | |||
Pat Brown died at age 90 in ] and is interred at ] in ]. His funeral was the most recent gubernatorial funeral to be held in the state of California to date, not counting the national ] of President ]. | |||
Brown died from a heart attack at his home in the ] section of Los Angeles on February 16, 1996, at the age of 90.<ref name = Michaelson/> He was interred at ] in ]. | |||
{{cquote|My son asked me what I hoped to accomplish as Governor. I told him: essentially to make life more comfortable for people, as far as government can. I think that embraces everything from developing the water resources vital to California's growth, to getting a man to work and back fifteen minutes earlier if it can be done through a state highway program.}} | |||
{{blockquote|My son asked me what I hoped to accomplish as Governor. I told him: essentially to make life more comfortable for people, as far as government can. I think that embraces everything from developing the water resources vital to California's growth, to getting a man to work and back fifteen minutes earlier if it can be done through a state highway program.}} | |||
== Presidential and vice presidential candidate == | == Presidential and vice presidential candidate == | ||
Unlike his son Jerry, Pat |
Unlike his son ], Pat himself never seriously ran for President of the United States, but was frequently California's "]." During the ], Brown placed distant second to ] in total votes (65.04% to 9.97%),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=55191|title=Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1952|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> losing California to Kefauver.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=35874|title=Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 03, 1952|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> During Governor Brown's first term, the national census confirmed that California would become the nation's most populous state.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/InfoLinkDetail.html?InfoLinkID=1811|title=Our Campaigns - Information Link - Governor Pat Brown Inaugural Address January 7, 1963|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> This, along with Brown's political popularity, would contribute to two national presidential victories, when he pledged his votes to the national candidates, John F. Kennedy in 1960, and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, at the Democratic conventions. As governor, Brown was again California's favorite son ], winning his home state with a large margin to his only opponent, ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=35944|title=Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 07, 1960|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> Running only in the California primary, the state's sheer population size placed him second, behind the eventual nominee, John F. Kennedy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=55200|title=Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1960|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> thus repeating his 1952 state and national rankings. However, only one delegate cast his vote for Brown at the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=58375|title=Our Campaigns - US President - D Convention Race - Jul 11, 1960|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> | ||
During the ], by running again only in California, the nation's largest state electorate vote, Brown placed first this time in both the California and the Democratic national primary total,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=55202|title=Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1964|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> besting the eventual nominee. However, |
During the ], by running again only in California, the nation's largest state electorate vote, Brown placed first this time in both the California and the Democratic national primary total,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=55202|title=Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1964|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> besting the eventual nominee. However, along with over a dozen other candidates, aside from ], Brown was a ] for incumbent ], whose nomination was assured.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=35980|title=Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 02, 1964|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> | ||
Brown also briefly sought |
Brown also briefly sought the vice presidential nomination at the ], winning one vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=59952|title=Our Campaigns - US Vice President - D Convention Race - Aug 13, 1956|work=ourcampaigns.com}}</ref> | ||
==Electoral history== | |||
== Bibliography == | |||
{{Election box begin no change | title=1958 gubernatorial election, California<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1958-11-04 |title=November 4, 1958 General Election |work=Join California |access-date=June 12, 2016}}</ref>}} | |||
*Brown, Edmund G., ''Reagan and Reality: The Two Californias'' (NY, 1970) | |||
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change| | |||
*R. Rapoport. ''California Dreaming: The Political Odyssey of Pat & Jerry Brown,'' Berkeley: Nolo Press (1982) ISBN 0-917316-48-7 | |||
|party = California Democratic Party | |||
*{{citation|last=Rarick|first=Ethan|title=California Rising: The Life and Times of Pat Brown|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=vo99tTE2lDcC|place=], ], ]|publisher=]|year=2006|ref=harv}} | |||
|candidate = Pat Brown | |||
*Rice, Richard B. (2012). ''The Elusive Eden: A New History of California,'' New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-338556-3. | |||
|votes = 3,140,076 | |||
|percentage = 59.75 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = California Republican Party | |||
|candidate = ] | |||
|votes = 2,110,911 | |||
|percentage = 40.16 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate no change| | |||
|party = Other | |||
|candidate = ]s and scattering | |||
|votes = 4,790 | |||
|percentage = 0.09 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box total no change| | |||
|votes = 5,255,777 | |||
|percentage = 100.00 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box turnout no change| | |||
|percentage = | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box gain with party link without swing| | |||
|winner = California Democratic Party | |||
|loser = California Republican Party | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box end}} | |||
{{Election box begin no change | title=1962 gubernatorial election, California<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1962-11-06 |title=November 6, 1962 General Election |work=Join California |access-date=June 12, 2016}}</ref>}} | |||
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = California Democratic Party | |||
|candidate = Pat Brown (]) | |||
|votes = 3,037,109 | |||
|percentage = 51.89 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = California Republican Party | |||
|candidate = ] | |||
|votes = 2,740,351 | |||
|percentage = 46.82 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = Prohibition Party | |||
|candidate = Robert L. Wyckoff | |||
|votes = 69,700 | |||
|percentage = 1.19 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate no change| | |||
|party = Other | |||
|candidate = ]s and scattering | |||
|votes = 6,110 | |||
|percentage = 0.10 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box total no change| | |||
|votes = 5,853,270 | |||
|percentage = 100.00 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box turnout no change| | |||
|percentage = 57.50 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box hold with party link without swing| | |||
|winner = California Democratic Party | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box end}} | |||
{{Election box begin no change | title=1966 gubernatorial election, California<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=36416 |title=CA Governor Race – Nov 08, 1966 |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=August 25, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=6&year=1966&f=0&off=5&elect=0|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912100628/http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=6&year=1966&f=0&off=5&elect=0|url-status=dead|title=1966 Gubernatorial General Election Results - California|archive-date=September 12, 2015}}</ref>}} | |||
{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = California Republican Party | |||
|candidate = ] | |||
|votes = 3,742,913 | |||
|percentage = 57.55 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate with party link no change| | |||
|party = California Democratic Party | |||
|candidate = Pat Brown (]) | |||
|votes = 2,749,174 | |||
|percentage = 42.27 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box candidate no change| | |||
|party = Other | |||
|candidate = Scattering | |||
|votes = 11,358 | |||
|percentage = 0.18 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box total no change| | |||
|votes = 6,503,445 | |||
|percentage = 100.00 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box turnout no change| | |||
|percentage = 57.70 | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box gain with party link without swing| | |||
|winner = California Republican Party | |||
|loser = California Democratic Party | |||
}} | |||
{{Election box end}} | |||
== See also == | == See also == | ||
Line 132: | Line 257: | ||
== References == | == References == | ||
{{reflist| |
{{reflist|30em}} | ||
== Further reading == | |||
* Anderson, Totton J. “The 1958 Election in California.” ''Western Political Quarterly'' 12#1 (1959), pp. 276–300. | |||
* Anderson, Totton J., and Eugene C. Lee. “The 1962 Election in California.” ''Western Political Quarterly,'' 16#2 (1963), pp. 396–420. | |||
* Anderson, Totton J., and Eugene C. Lee. "The 1966 election in California." ''Western Political Quarterly'' 20.2_part2 (1967): 535–554. | |||
* Anderson, Totton J. "Extremism in California Politics: The Brown-Knowland and Brown-Nixon Campaigns Compared." ''Political Research Quarterly'' 16.2 (1963): 371+. | |||
* Becker, Jules, and Douglas A. Fuchs. "How two major California dailies covered Reagan vs. Brown." ''Journalism Quarterly'' 44.4 (1967): 645–653. | |||
* Brilliant, Mark. ''The color of America has changed: How racial diversity shaped civil rights reform in California, 1941-1978'' (Oxford University Press, 2010). | |||
* Brown, Edmund G., ''Reagan and Reality: The Two Californias''. (NY, 1970.) | |||
* Kully, Robert D. "The 1962 California Gubernatorial Campaign: The 'New' Brown." ''Western Speech'' (Spring 1966) 30#2 pp. 111–122. | |||
* Mills, James R. ''A Disorderly House: The Brown-Unruh Years in Sacramento'' (Heyday Books, 1987). | |||
* Pawel, Miriam. (2018). ''The Browns of California : the family dynasty that transformed a state and shaped a nation''. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. | |||
* Rapoport, Roger. “The Political Odyssey of Pat Brown.” ''California History'' 64#1 (1985), pp. 2–9. | |||
* Rapoport, R. ''California Dreaming: The Political Odyssey of Pat & Jerry Brown''. (Berkeley: Nolo Press, 1982) {{ISBN|0-917316-48-7}}. | |||
* {{citation|last=Rarick|first=Ethan|title=California Rising: The Life and Times of Pat Brown|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vo99tTE2lDcC|place=Berkeley|publisher=]|year=2005|isbn=978-0-520-93984-4}} | |||
* Rarick, Ethan. "The Brown Dynasty." in ''Modern American Political Dynasties: A Study of Power, Family, and Political Influence'' ed by Kathleen Gronnerud and Scott J. Spitzer. (2018): 211–30. | |||
* Rice, Richard B. (2012). ''The Elusive Eden: A New History of California''. New York: McGraw-Hill. {{ISBN|978-0-07-338556-3}}. | |||
* Rogin, Michael Paul, John L. Shover. ''Political Change in California: Critical Elections and Social Movements, 1890-1966'' (Greenwood, 1970). | |||
* Rorabaugh, William J. ''Berkeley at War, the 1960s'' (Oxford University Press, 1989).. | |||
* Schuparra, Kurt. ''Triumph of the Right: The Rise of the California Conservative Movement, 1945-1966'' (M.E. Sharpe, 1998). | |||
== External links == | == External links == | ||
{{Commons category}} | |||
* | |||
* . | |||
* | |||
* | |||
* | |||
* . documentary film | |||
*Shows off his custom license plate | |||
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120521001210/http://politicalgraveyard.com/families/11379.html |date=May 21, 2012 }} | |||
* | |||
* Pat Brown's ] files, hosted at the ]: | * Pat Brown's ] files, hosted at the ]: | ||
** | ** | ||
** ] | ** ] | ||
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| NAME = Brown, Edmund Gerald, Sr. | |||
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| SHORT DESCRIPTION = Governor of California | |||
| DATE OF BIRTH = 1905-4-21 | |||
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| DATE OF DEATH = 1996-2-16 | |||
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Latest revision as of 00:38, 18 December 2024
Governor of California from 1959 to 1967 This article is about the California politician. For other uses, see Pat Brown (disambiguation).
Pat Brown | |
---|---|
Brown c. 1963 | |
32nd Governor of California | |
In office January 5, 1959 – January 2, 1967 | |
Lieutenant | Glenn M. Anderson |
Preceded by | Goodwin Knight |
Succeeded by | Ronald Reagan |
23rd Attorney General of California | |
In office January 8, 1951 – January 5, 1959 | |
Governor | Earl Warren Goodwin Knight |
Preceded by | Frederick N. Howser |
Succeeded by | Stanley Mosk |
21st District Attorney of San Francisco | |
In office 1944–1950 | |
Preceded by | Matthew Brady |
Succeeded by | Thomas C. Lynch |
Personal details | |
Born | Edmund Gerald Brown (1905-04-21)April 21, 1905 San Francisco, California, U.S. |
Died | February 16, 1996(1996-02-16) (aged 90) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Resting place | Holy Cross Cemetery (Colma, California) |
Political party | Democratic (1932–1996) |
Other political affiliations | Republican (before 1932) |
Spouse |
Bernice Layne (m. 1930) |
Children | 4, including Jerry and Kathleen |
Alma mater | San Francisco Law School (LLB) |
Profession | Lawyer |
Edmund Gerald "Pat" Brown (April 21, 1905 – February 16, 1996) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 32nd governor of California from 1959 to 1967. His first elected office was as district attorney for San Francisco, and he was later elected attorney general of California in 1950, before becoming the state's governor after the 1958 election.
Born in San Francisco, Brown had an early interest in speaking and politics. He skipped college and he earned an LL.B. law degree in 1927. In his first term as governor, Brown delivered on major legislation, including a tax increase and the California Master Plan for Higher Education. The California State Water Project was a major and highly complex achievement. He also pushed through civil-rights legislation. In a second term, troubles mounted, including the defeat of a fair housing law (1964 California Proposition 14), the 1960s Berkeley protests, the Watts riots, and internal battles among Democrats over support or opposition to the Vietnam War. He lost the 1966 California gubernatorial election for a third term to future president Ronald Reagan; his legacy has since earned him regard as the builder of modern California.
His son Jerry Brown was the 34th and 39th governor of California, as well as the 31st attorney general of California, holding two offices he once held. His daughter, Kathleen Brown, was the 29th California state treasurer.
Background
Brown was born in San Francisco, California, one of four children of Ida (née Schuckman) and Edmund Joseph Brown. His father came from an Irish Catholic family, with his grandfather Joseph immigrating from County Tipperary, Ireland. His mother Ida was from a German Protestant family. He acquired the nickname "Pat" during his school years; the nickname was a reference to his Patrick Henry–like oratory. When he was 12 and selling Liberty Bonds on street corners, he would end his spiel with, "Give me liberty, or give me death."
Brown was a debate champion as a member of the Lowell Forensic Society at San Francisco's Lowell High School, where he held twelve offices of student government; he graduated from Lowell in 1923. Rather than pursue an undergraduate degree, he instead worked in his father's cigar store, which doubled as a gambling shop. He studied law at night, while working part-time for attorney Milton Schmitt, receiving an LL.B. degree from San Francisco Law School in spring 1927. After passing the California bar exam the following fall, he began full-time employment in Schmitt's office.
Brown ran as a Republican Party candidate for the State Assembly in 1928, but lost badly; he moved to the Democratic Party in 1934, as the Great Depression had made him lose confidence in the pro-business Republican Party. He quickly became a New Dealer, and an active party participant. His second attempt at election to public office came in 1939, running for district attorney of San Francisco against Matthew Brady, an incumbent of twenty-two years, who beat him handily.
District attorney
Four years after his defeat, Brown ran for district attorney again in 1943 with the slogan "Crack down on crime, elect Brown this time." His victory over Brady was decisive, coming to the surprise of San Francisco politicians, as well as bookmakers who had put 5 to 1 odds against his election. He was reelected to the office in 1947, and after seven years in office, received the support of Republican Governor Earl Warren. He emulated the course followed by Warren when the Governor himself was the Alameda County district attorney. His actions against gambling, corruption, and juvenile delinquency brought attention to his office.
In 1946, as the Democratic nominee, Brown lost the race for attorney general of California to Los Angeles County District Attorney Frederick N. Howser. Running again in 1950, he won election as Attorney General and was re-elected in 1954. As Attorney General, he was the only Democrat to win statewide election in California.
First term as governor, 1959–1963
In the 1958 California gubernatorial election, he was the Democratic nominee for governor, running on a campaign of "responsible liberalism," with support for labor, and forcing the ballot name change of Proposition 18 from "Right-to-Work" to "Employer and Employee Relations," whereas Brown's opponent campaigned for such right-to-work laws as Proposition 18 provided. In the general election, Brown defeated Republican U.S. Senator William F. Knowland with a near three-fifths majority, Proposition 18 and other anti-labor ballot measures were voted down, and Democrats were elected to a majority in both houses of the legislature, and to all statewide offices, excepting Secretary of State.
Brown was known for his cheerful personality, and his championing of building an infrastructure to meet the needs of the rapidly growing state. As journalist Adam Nagourney reports: "With a jubilant Mr. Brown officiating, California commemorated the moment it became the nation's largest state, in 1962, with a church-bell-ringing, four-day celebration. He was the boom-boom governor for a boom-boom time: championing highways, universities and, most consequential, a sprawling water network to feed the explosion of agriculture and development in the dry reaches of central and Southern California." Brown appointed Fred Dutton as chief of staff as a reward for his enormously energetic and effective row last campaign manager. Bert Levitt, a Republican friend, was named director of finance to draw up a state budget. The role of press secretary went to reporter Hale Champion. Further down the ladder, Brown cleaned house, replacing all of Knight's political appointees. His team worked hard in preparation for the governor's inauguration. Although he was basically a moderate, Brown reached out to the powerful left wing in his party by emphasizing the word “liberal” repeatedly, He proclaimed: "Offered government by retreat, the people preferred progress." Newcomers were arriving at 500,000 a year, and there was no time to be lost in responding to the needs they created.
He set up a Fair Employment Practices Commission that helped African Americans break through the informal barriers that it kept them out of white collar positions. Numerous other reforms were passed, largely thanks to cooperation with the Democratic leaders in the state legislature, including George Miller Jr. in the Senate, and Bill Munnell and Jesse Unruh in the assembly.
Tax increase
Brown wanted to expand state services but first had to end the deficit and obtain enough revenue for his plans. Tax increases were headed by the personal income tax, where the top rate went from 6% to 7%, with new exemptions for the poor. There was an increase in the profits taxes paid by banks and corporations, a tax on cigarettes, beer, and betting, as well as a severance tax on oil and natural gas. A few compromises were made, but in the end, Brown got his money for expansion of the state budget.
California State Water Project
Main article: California State Water ProjectWith his administration beginning in 1959, Brown set in motion a series of actions whose magnitude was unseen since the governorship of Hiram Johnson. The post–World War II economic expansion brought millions of newcomers to the state which, along with the state's cyclical droughts, severely strained California's water resources, especially in dry Southern California. This began the California State Water Project, whose objective was to address the fact that one half of the state's people lived in a region containing one percent of the state's natural supply of water. Much of the state's extant water was controlled by regional bodies, and the federal government. These federally controlled areas were under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Reclamation, which was considering the implementation of a "160-acre principle", a policy contained within the Newlands Reclamation Act of 1902, limiting delivery of federally subsidized water to parcels equal to the size of a homestead, which was 160 acres. This brought strong opposition from the agricultural industry, and as such would require significant splintering of existent land holdings. To relieve this threat to the agricultural economy, Brown and other state leaders began the State Water Project, whose master plan included a vast system of reservoirs, aqueducts, and pipelines powered by pump stations and electrical generating plants to transport the water statewide. This included the capture of the Sacramento River runoff, redirecting the seabound water through the San Joaquin Valley, not only irrigating the arid desert regions, but also providing Southern California, particularly Los Angeles County, with the water required to sustain expansions in population and industry. The entire project was projected to take sixty years, costing $13 billion, nearly $104 billion in 2015 dollars.
Opposition to the State Water Project was immediate, especially with Sacramento River Delta users worrying about saltwater intrusion which had already been a concern without factoring in redirection of outward freshwater flow. Residents of the Bay Area and elsewhere in Northern California were concerned about the increase in water draw the South might demand as populations expanded. While Southern support for the project was clear, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California worried that the project did not ensure permanent rights to Northern water. This led the legislature to amend the plan, prohibiting the state's southern water rights from being rescinded, clearing any remaining reservations from the state's southern water authorities. Governor Brown was a staunch supporter of the plan, energetically opposing critics and seeking solutions. He lobbied Congress to exempt California from the 160-acre rule, lauding the benefit of employment and progress to the state's northern and southern residents, calling for an end to the north–south rivalry. Brown also reduced his introductory bond issuance from $11 billion to $1.75 billion, beginning a television campaign to appeal to residents. Governor Brown insisted on the Burns-Porter Act which sent the bond issue to a referendum; the 1960 vote saw Butte County as the sole Northern California county not voting against the measure. However, the growth in Southern California's population led to the plan's adoption.
Political reforms
The first year of Brown's administration saw the abolition of the cross-filing system that had enabled candidates to file with multiple political parties at once while running for office. The 1964 U.S. Supreme Court decision Reynolds v. Sims declared unconstitutional California's "federal plan", which had allocated the apportionment of state senators along county lines, as opposed to population-based districts. Now, while the City and County of San Francisco had one state senator, Los Angeles County received thirteen; this massive shift in the legislature's composition led Brown, along with Assembly Speaker Jesse M. Unruh, to change the way California government operated.
In 1962, the Constitutional Revision Commission was established. It operated until 1974, proposing changes to the state's 1879 constitution, decreasing length and complexity by nearly fifty percent through ballot propositions recommended by the commission, of which seventy-five percent were approved by voters. Among the enacted reforms were removal of the 120-day limit on legislative sessions, increased legislators' salaries, and a reduction in the percentage of signatures required to place propositions on the ballot. Governor Brown insisted on Unruh's reforms that abolished various government agencies and consolidated others.
Structural reform of the executive branch
Upon taking office, Brown realized that the state executive branch had grown to an unmanageable level of complexity because of the legislature's unfortunate habit of solving problems by creating new boards and commissions directly responsible to the governor—approximately 360 boards, commissions, and agencies all reported directly to the governor. In February 1961, Brown proposed a massive reorganization plan for the state government, which included the creation of several so-called "super-agencies" (originally spelled with a hyphen) to greatly reduce the number of direct reports to the governor. In September 1961, Brown appointed the secretaries of the first four superagencies (of eight then planned). The superagencies continue to exist today as part of the long-term legacy of the Brown administration, although there are currently only seven, and there are several Cabinet-level departments outside of them.
Education
Californians were energized by the need to catch up with the Soviet Union, which had taken the lead in technology by launching the world's first space satellite Sputnik 1. Brown signed the California Master Plan for Higher Education in 1960. This new system defined the roles of the University of California, the California State University, and California Community College systems, each with different goals, objectives, offerings, and student composition. It provided a model for other states to develop their own similar systems. Governor Brown sought free higher education for California students, which the Master Plan provided. His successor, Ronald Reagan, would change this policy, insisting on student tuition. With the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, state education funding fell further, straining Brown's Master Plan due to lack of property tax funds.
Re-election of 1962 against Richard Nixon
Brown's first term as governor was very successful, but failings on important matters to him were costly. Agriculture and special interests defeated his best efforts to pass a $1.25 per hour minimum wage, and Brown's opposition to capital punishment was overruled by the practice being supported statewide. Brown was a supporter of Senator John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, but Brown's California delegation to the Democratic National Convention did not abide by his support for Kennedy, which nearly cost Kennedy the nomination. Brown's opponent in 1962 was former Vice President Richard Nixon. Having narrowly lost the presidency to Kennedy in 1960, Nixon was not interested in the governorship of his native California other than as a path to the White House. Unfamiliar with California politics and matters, Nixon resorted to accusing Brown of 'softness' against communism, which was not a successful platform. In the November 1962 election, Brown was reelected, by a 52%-47% margin of victory, whereupon Nixon famously held his self-proclaimed "last press conference" (he would eventually become president in 1969).
Second term as governor, 1963–1967
The legislature passed the Rumford Fair Housing Act, which provided that landlords could not deny people housing because of ethnicity, religion, sex, marital status, physical handicap, or familial status. This new law brought a slew of lawsuits against the state government, and led to California Proposition 14 (1964), which overturned the Rumford Act with nearly two-thirds in favor. The U.S. Supreme Court decision of Reitman v. Mulkey (387 U.S. 369) upheld the California Supreme Court's ruling that the proposition overturning the Rumford Act was unconstitutional.
Brown's terms in office were marked by a dramatic increase in water-resources development. The California Aqueduct, built as part of the program, was named for him. He also presided over the implementation of the California Master Plan for Higher Education, fair employment legislation, a state economic development commission, and a consumers' council. He sponsored some 40 major proposals, gaining passage of 35.
Watts riots
On August 11, 1965, the Watts riots erupted in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, lasting for a week. On the evening of the same day, Marquette Frye was pulled over on suspicion of driving while under the influence; a field sobriety test was administered, he was arrested, and the police officer called for the impounding of his vehicle. When his mother, Rena Price, was brought to the scene by his brother, a scuffle began, and soon crowds built, snowballing the incident into full-blown riots. By August 13, the third day of riots, Governor Brown ordered 2,300 National Guardsmen to Watts, which increased to 3,900 by the night's end. By the conflict's end, 1,000 people were wounded and 34 died, $40 million worth of damage was inflicted, and 1,000 buildings destroyed. This incident began massive protests and riots throughout the state which, along with developments of the Vietnam War, began Brown's decline in popularity.
Capital punishment
During both terms in office, Brown commuted 23 death sentences, signing the first commutation on his second day in office. One of his more notable commutations was the death sentence of Erwin "Machine-Gun" Walker, whose execution in the gas chamber for first-degree murder had been postponed because of an attempted suicide some hours before it was scheduled to take place. After Walker recovered, his execution was postponed while he was being restored to mental competency. After Walker was declared sane in 1961, Brown commuted Walker's death sentence to life without the possibility of parole. Walker was later paroled after the California Supreme Court held that the governor could not legally deny a prisoner the right to parole in a death-sentence commutation. Another prisoner whose death sentence was commuted by Brown committed at least one murder after being paroled.
While governor, Brown's attitude toward capital punishment was often ambivalent, if not arbitrary. An ardent supporter of gun control, he was more inclined to let convicts go to the gas chamber if they had killed with guns than with other weapons. He later admitted that he denied clemency in one capital case principally since the legislator who represented the district in which the murder occurred held a swing vote on farmworker legislation supported by Brown, and had told Brown that his district "would go up in smoke" if the governor commuted the man's sentence.
In contrast, Governor Brown approved 36 executions, including the highly controversial cases of Caryl Chessman in 1960 and Elizabeth Duncan in 1962; she was the last female put to death before a national moratorium was instituted. Though he had supported capital punishment while serving as district attorney, as attorney general, and when first elected governor, he later became an opponent of it.
During the Chessman case, Brown proposed that capital punishment be abolished, but the proposal failed. His Republican successor, Ronald Reagan, was a firm supporter of capital punishment and oversaw, in 1967, the last execution in California prior to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that it was unconstitutional in Furman v. Georgia (1972).
Campaign for third term
Brown's decision to seek a third term as governor, violating an earlier promise not to do so, hurt his popularity. His sagging popularity was evidenced by a tough battle in the Democratic primary, normally not a concern for an incumbent. Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty received nearly forty percent of the primary vote while Brown only received fifty-two, a very low number for an incumbent in a primary election.
The California Republican Party seized upon Brown's increasing unpopularity by nominating a well-known and charismatic political outsider, actor and union leader Ronald Reagan. With Richard Nixon and William Knowland working tirelessly behind the scenes and Reagan trumpeting his law-and-order campaign message, Reagan received almost two thirds of the primary vote over George Christopher, the moderate Republican former mayor of San Francisco; his push towards the general election held great momentum. At first, Brown ran a low-key campaign, stating that running the state was his biggest priority, but later began campaigning on the record of his eight years as governor. As Reagan's lead in the polls increased, Brown began to panic and made a serious gaffe when he ran a television commercial in which he told a group of schoolchildren that his opponent was an actor, and reminded them "it was an actor who shot Abraham Lincoln. The comparison of Reagan to John Wilkes Booth did not go over well, furthering the decline of Brown's campaign.
On election day, Reagan was ahead in the polls and favored to win a relatively close election. Brown lost the 1966 election to Ronald Reagan in his second consecutive race against a future Republican President. Reagan won in a landslide; his nearly 1 million vote plurality surprised even his staunchest supporters. Reagan's victory against an incumbent was a dramatic upheaval. His majority of nearly fifty-eight percent nearly matched that of Brown's own victory in 1958, and Reagan garnered some 990,000 new votes from the larger electorate.
Legacy
Although he left office defeated, Brown's time in office is one which has fared well. Brown was a relatively popular Democrat in what was, at the time, a Republican-leaning state. After his reelection victory over Richard Nixon in 1962, he was strongly considered for Lyndon Johnson's running mate in the 1964 presidential election, a position that eventually went to Hubert Humphrey. However, Brown's popularity began to sag amidst the civil disorders of the Watts riots and the early anti–Vietnam War demonstrations at U.C. Berkeley. His monumental infrastructure projects, building aqueducts, canals, and pump stations, established new fertile lands in the Central Valley; the Governor Edmund G. Brown California Aqueduct was named after him. During his term, four new University of California campuses were built, as well as seven new California State University campuses, making the Master Plan's higher education system the largest in the world. During the Watergate scandal President Richard Nixon considered appointing Brown as special counsel, but the choice was rejected by Attorney General Elliot Richardson.
While no person elected Governor of California has been denied a second term since Earl Warren defeated Culbert Olson in 1942, Brown's losing bid for a third term to Ronald Reagan was the last time, as of 2022, an incumbent governor lost in the general election (Gray Davis' loss in the 2003 recall was a non-quadrennial election). Today, Governor Brown is widely credited with the creation of modern California.
Personal life
Brown's wife, Bernice Layne, was a fellow student at Lowell High School, but it was not until the completion of his law degree, and her teaching credential, that they began a courtship. Following his loss in the Assembly election, he and Bernice eloped in 1930. They had four children, who were all born in San Francisco:
- Barbara Layne Brown (born July 13, 1931)
- Cynthia Arden Brown (born October 19, 1933 – died March 29, 2015)
- Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938)
- Kathleen Lynn Brown (born September 25, 1945)
In 1958, as governor-elect, Brown appeared as a guest challenger on the TV panel show What's My Line?
After leaving office, Brown returned to the practice of law and also experienced success in business, investing in a company involved with the Indonesian petroleum industry.
Brown died from a heart attack at his home in the Beverly Canyon section of Los Angeles on February 16, 1996, at the age of 90. He was interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in Colma.
My son asked me what I hoped to accomplish as Governor. I told him: essentially to make life more comfortable for people, as far as government can. I think that embraces everything from developing the water resources vital to California's growth, to getting a man to work and back fifteen minutes earlier if it can be done through a state highway program.
Presidential and vice presidential candidate
Unlike his son Jerry Brown, Pat himself never seriously ran for President of the United States, but was frequently California's "favorite son." During the 1952 Democratic primaries, Brown placed distant second to Estes Kefauver in total votes (65.04% to 9.97%), losing California to Kefauver. During Governor Brown's first term, the national census confirmed that California would become the nation's most populous state. This, along with Brown's political popularity, would contribute to two national presidential victories, when he pledged his votes to the national candidates, John F. Kennedy in 1960, and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, at the Democratic conventions. As governor, Brown was again California's favorite son in 1960, winning his home state with a large margin to his only opponent, George H. McLain. Running only in the California primary, the state's sheer population size placed him second, behind the eventual nominee, John F. Kennedy, thus repeating his 1952 state and national rankings. However, only one delegate cast his vote for Brown at the 1960 Democratic National Convention.
During the 1964 primaries, by running again only in California, the nation's largest state electorate vote, Brown placed first this time in both the California and the Democratic national primary total, besting the eventual nominee. However, along with over a dozen other candidates, aside from George Wallace, Brown was a stalking horse for incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson, whose nomination was assured.
Brown also briefly sought the vice presidential nomination at the 1956 Democratic National Convention, winning one vote.
Electoral history
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Pat Brown | 3,140,076 | 59.75 | |||
Republican | William F. Knowland | 2,110,911 | 40.16 | |||
Other | Write-ins and scattering | 4,790 | 0.09 | |||
Total votes | 5,255,777 | 100.00 | ||||
Turnout | ||||||
Democratic gain from Republican |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Pat Brown (I) | 3,037,109 | 51.89 | |
Republican | Richard M. Nixon | 2,740,351 | 46.82 | |
Prohibition | Robert L. Wyckoff | 69,700 | 1.19 | |
Other | Write-ins and scattering | 6,110 | 0.10 | |
Total votes | 5,853,270 | 100.00 | ||
Turnout | 57.50 | |||
Democratic hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Ronald Reagan | 3,742,913 | 57.55 | |||
Democratic | Pat Brown (I) | 2,749,174 | 42.27 | |||
Other | Scattering | 11,358 | 0.18 | |||
Total votes | 6,503,445 | 100.00 | ||||
Turnout | 57.70 | |||||
Republican gain from Democratic |
See also
References
- ^ Kotkin, Joel (April 19, 2015). "The Daily Beast".
- ^ "California State of Mind: The Legacy of Pat Brown". Pat Brown Documentary. Retrieved July 28, 2022 – via YouTube.
- "Award-winning journalist discusses Brown family, California politics | University of Redlands".
- ^ Reinhold, Robert (February 18, 1996). "Edmund G. Brown Is Dead at 90; He Led California in Boom Years". The New York Times. Retrieved November 14, 2010.
- Ethan Rarick, California Rising: The Life and Times of Pat Brown (2005) pp. 8, 30.
- Video on YouTube
- Rarick (2005) pp. 15, 17.
- ^ Rice, Richard B. (2012). The Elusive Eden: A New History of California. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
- Rarick (2005) pp 34–45.
- Pawel, Miriam (2018). The Browns of California. New York, NY: Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 66.
- Adam Nagourney, "Brown's Arid California, Thanks Partly to His Father," New York Times May 16, 2015
- Rarick (2005), 113–115.
- Rarick (2005), 125–127.
- Rarick (2005), 120–121, 134.
- "US Inflation Calculator".
- Blanchard, Robert (February 14, 1961). "Brown Criticized for His Super-Agency Proposal". Los Angeles Times. p. 1. Available through ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
- Gillam, Jerry (October 1, 1961). "Brown Picks 8-Member Cabinet: Four Named to Head New State Super-Agencies". Los Angeles Times. p. 1. Available through ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
- Van Vechten, Renée B. (2011). California Politics: A Primer (2nd ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE. p. 63. ISBN 9781452203065. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
- Lawrence, David G.; Cummins, Jeffrey (2019). California: The Politics of Diversity (10th ed.). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 167. ISBN 9781538129302.
- Rarick, Ethan (June 10, 2005). California rising : the life and times of Pat Brown. Berkeley : University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-23627-1 – via Internet Archive.
- The California Idea and American Higher Education: 1850 to the 1960 Master Plan, John Aubrey Douglass, Stanford, Cal.: Stanford University Press, 2000, pages 308 and following.
- Kahn, Jeffery. "Ronald Reagan launched political career using the Berkeley campus as a target". UC Berkeley News. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
- Penner, Gloria; Burke, Megan. "Prop 13's Impact On Schools". KPBS News. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
- Peniel E. Joseph (2006). The Black Power Movement: Rethinking the Civil Rights-Black Power Era. CRC Press. pp. 47–. ISBN 978-0-415-94596-7. Retrieved January 8, 2013.
- Robert O. Self (2003). American Babylon: Race and the Struggle for Postwar Oakland. Princeton University Press. p. 168. ISBN 0-691-07026-1.
- Szymanski, Michael (August 5, 1990). "How Legacy of the Watts Riot Consumed, Ruined Man's Life". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2013.
- ^ Lewis, Anthony (August 20, 1989). "He was their last resort". The New York Times. Retrieved November 14, 2010.
- ^ Brown, Edmund (Pat) with Adler, Dick, Public Justice, Private Mercy: A Governor's Education on Death Row, New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, ISBN 1-55584-253-4, ISBN 978-1-55584-253-6 (1989)
- "Our Campaigns - CA Governor - D Primary Race - Jun 07, 1966". Retrieved February 13, 2019.
- ^ Reagan, Michael; Denney, Jim (2010), The New Reagan Revolution: How Ronald Reagan's Principles Can Restore America's Greatness, St. Martin's Publishing, pp. 111, ISBN 978-0-312-64454-3
- ^ Michaelson, Judith (February 18, 1996). "Ex-Governor Brown Led Building Boom". Los Angeles Times. p. A3, A26–27. Retrieved May 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- Graff, Garrett M. (2022). Watergate: A New History (1 ed.). New York: Avid Reader Press. p. 394. ISBN 978-1-9821-3916-2. OCLC 1260107112.
- "Cynthia Kelly Obituary". Legacy.com. Retrieved October 22, 2017.
- What's My Line? (February 18, 2014). "What's My Line? - CA Governor Edmund Brown; Harry Belafonte; Peter Lind Hayes [panel] (Nov 16, 1958)" – via YouTube.
- "Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1952". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 03, 1952". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - Information Link - Governor Pat Brown Inaugural Address January 7, 1963". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 07, 1960". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1960". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - US President - D Convention Race - Jul 11, 1960". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - US President - D Primaries Race - Feb 01, 1964". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - CA US President - D Primary Race - Jun 02, 1964". ourcampaigns.com.
- "Our Campaigns - US Vice President - D Convention Race - Aug 13, 1956". ourcampaigns.com.
- "November 4, 1958 General Election". Join California. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- "November 6, 1962 General Election". Join California. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- "CA Governor Race – Nov 08, 1966". Our Campaigns. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
- "1966 Gubernatorial General Election Results - California". Archived from the original on September 12, 2015.
Further reading
- Anderson, Totton J. “The 1958 Election in California.” Western Political Quarterly 12#1 (1959), pp. 276–300. online
- Anderson, Totton J., and Eugene C. Lee. “The 1962 Election in California.” Western Political Quarterly, 16#2 (1963), pp. 396–420. online
- Anderson, Totton J., and Eugene C. Lee. "The 1966 election in California." Western Political Quarterly 20.2_part2 (1967): 535–554. online
- Anderson, Totton J. "Extremism in California Politics: The Brown-Knowland and Brown-Nixon Campaigns Compared." Political Research Quarterly 16.2 (1963): 371+.
- Becker, Jules, and Douglas A. Fuchs. "How two major California dailies covered Reagan vs. Brown." Journalism Quarterly 44.4 (1967): 645–653.
- Brilliant, Mark. The color of America has changed: How racial diversity shaped civil rights reform in California, 1941-1978 (Oxford University Press, 2010).
- Brown, Edmund G., Reagan and Reality: The Two Californias. (NY, 1970.)
- Kully, Robert D. "The 1962 California Gubernatorial Campaign: The 'New' Brown." Western Speech (Spring 1966) 30#2 pp. 111–122.
- Mills, James R. A Disorderly House: The Brown-Unruh Years in Sacramento (Heyday Books, 1987).
- Pawel, Miriam. (2018). The Browns of California : the family dynasty that transformed a state and shaped a nation. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.
- Rapoport, Roger. “The Political Odyssey of Pat Brown.” California History 64#1 (1985), pp. 2–9. online
- Rapoport, R. California Dreaming: The Political Odyssey of Pat & Jerry Brown. (Berkeley: Nolo Press, 1982) ISBN 0-917316-48-7.
- Rarick, Ethan (2005), California Rising: The Life and Times of Pat Brown, Berkeley: University of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-93984-4 summary
- Rarick, Ethan. "The Brown Dynasty." in Modern American Political Dynasties: A Study of Power, Family, and Political Influence ed by Kathleen Gronnerud and Scott J. Spitzer. (2018): 211–30.
- Rice, Richard B. (2012). The Elusive Eden: A New History of California. New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-338556-3.
- Rogin, Michael Paul, John L. Shover. Political Change in California: Critical Elections and Social Movements, 1890-1966 (Greenwood, 1970).
- Rorabaugh, William J. Berkeley at War, the 1960s (Oxford University Press, 1989)..
- Schuparra, Kurt. Triumph of the Right: The Rise of the California Conservative Movement, 1945-1966 (M.E. Sharpe, 1998).
External links
- Edmund G. "Pat" Brown letters, 1975-1993. Collection guide, California State Library, California History Room.
- Official Biography and portrait from State of California
- California State of Mind: The Legacy of Pat Brown. documentary film
- Brown family of California at The Political Graveyard Archived May 21, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- Pat Brown's FBI files, hosted at the Internet Archive:
- Appearances on C-SPAN
Political offices | ||
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Preceded byGoodwin Knight | Governor of California 1959–1967 |
Succeeded byRonald Reagan |
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Preceded byFrederick N. Howser | Attorney General of California 1951–1959 |
Succeeded byStanley Mosk |
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Preceded byRichard P. Graves | Democratic nominee for Governor of California 1958, 1962, 1966 |
Succeeded byJesse M. Unruh |
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- 1996 deaths
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