Bill Nation

Bill Nation (born 1925) is an American politician who served as the 45th and 50th Mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and in the Wyoming House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party. He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1966 and election as Laramie County Clerk in 1970.

Bill Nation
45th and 50th Mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming
In office
January 2, 1962[1] – 1966
Preceded byWorth Story
Succeeded byBill Herbert Kingham
In office
January 2, 1973[2] – January 3, 1977[3]
Preceded byJames D. Vanvelzor
Succeeded byDonald Erickson
Member of the Wyoming House of Representatives from Laramie County
In office
1965[4] – 1967[4]
Personal details
Born1925 (age 95–96)
Lingle, Wyoming
Political partyDemocratic Party
Spouse(s)Jo Ann Petersen
Children4

Early life

Bill Nation was born in Lingle, Wyoming, in 1925. During World War II he served as a gunner aboard a destroyer under Admiral William Halsey Jr.'s command. He married Jo Ann Petersen, with whom he had four children.[5]

Career

Elections

Prior to entering politics Nation was a professional photographer. In September 1959, Nation announced that he would run for the mayoralty of Cheyenne, Wyoming and was the first person to do so.[6][7] However, incumbent Mayor Worth Story and state senator R. J. Keelan were the finalists in the primary and Story would later defeat Keelan in the general election.[8][9]

In 1961, Nation ran for mayor of Cheyenne, placed first in the primary ahead of incumbent Mayor Story, and defeated Story in the general election.[10][11] On September 30, 1963, Nation filed to run for reelection, placed first in the primary, and won in the general election.[12][13][14] Nation announced that he would not seek reelection in 1965, and was succeeded by Bill Herbert Kingham.[15][16]

Nation announced that he would seek election to the mayoral office on September 12, 1967, but placed third in the primary behind former Mayor R. E. Cheever and state legislator George R. Cox.[17][18] On October 6, 1969, Nation filed to run in the mayoral election, but was defeated in the general election by incumbent Mayor Floyd Holland.[19][20]

In 1972, Nation defeated incumbent Mayor James Van Velzor by five votes in the mayoral election, which was the smallest margin of victory for any Cheyenne mayor.[21]

Nation announced at a press conference on July 21, 1976, that he would seek reelection.[4] During the general election campaign he spent $936 against Don Erickson's, who was endorsed by the Cheyenne Central Labor council despite being a Republican, $988.42.[22][23] In the general election Nation was defeated by Erickson.[24]

In 1980, Nation ran for the mayoral office, placed second in the primary, but lost to incumbent Mayor Erickson in the general election.[25][26]

Tenure

In 1962, Nation was elected to the board of directors of the Wyoming Association of Municipalities alongside other mayors and local officials in Wyoming.[27] In 1963, he was selected to serve as vice-president of the organization.[28]

After the assassination of John F. Kennedy Nation proposed naming Cheyenne's airport after Kennedy in December 1963, but later chose to not introduce the proposal.[29][30] In 1974, Nation rejected an attempt by the American Nazi Party to establish a national headquarters in Cheyenne and called for other residents of Cheyenne to write to the American Nazi Party to express their views on the proposal.[31]

In 1973, the Model Cities Program in Cheyenne had charges of discrimination filed against it by the Cheyenne Local Development Corporation due to its budget being decreased and had been investigated by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Nation and Gerald Iverson, the director of the Model Cities Program, denied that there was discrimination, but the city was found guilty of discrimination on June 11.[32][33]

Other political offices

In 1964, Nation was elected to the Wyoming House of Representatives as one of eleven members from Laramie County as a member of the Democratic Party.[34] In 1965, he was appointed to serve on the Revenue, City and County Affairs, and Welfare, Buildings, Institutions, Sanitary and Medical Affairs committees.[35] On March 9, 1967, Governor Stanley K. Hathaway appointed Bill Nation as one of nine members of the Wyoming Recreation Committee.[36]

On March 8, 1966, Nation announced that he would seek the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.[37] On May 10, he selected Kermit D. Glover, who had served as Nation's campaign manager for his mayoral and state legislature campaigns, as his gubernatorial campaign manager.[38] In the Democratic primary he was defeated by Ernest Wilkerson.[39]

On July 7, 1970, Nation filed to run for Laramie County Clerk and won the Democratic nomination, but lost in the general election against incumbent Republican clerk John B. Huisman.[40][41][42]

Electoral history
Bill Nation electoral history
1961 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral primary[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Bill Nation 3,491 46.40%
Nonpartisan Worth Story (incumbent) 3,160 42.00%
Nonpartisan Homer J. McAuliffe 873 11.60%
Total votes 7,524 100.00%
1961 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral election[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Bill Nation 6,507 58.62%
Nonpartisan Worth Story (incumbent) 4,594 41.38%
Total votes 11,101 100.00%
1963 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral election[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Bill Nation (incumbent) 6,544 60.17%
Nonpartisan O. N. Buckles 4,331 39.83%
Total votes 10,875 100.00%
1966 Wyoming Gubernatorial Democratic primary[39]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Ernest Wilkerson 13,145 31.07%
Democratic Bill Nation 9,834 23.25%
Democratic Jack R. Gage 8,661 20.47%
Democratic Raymond B. Whitaker 6,238 14.75%
Democratic Howard L. Burke 4,426 10.46%
Total votes 42,304 100.00%
1967 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral primary[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan R. E. Cheever 2,996 31.69%
Nonpartisan George R. Cox 2,341 24.76%
Nonpartisan Bill Nation 2,089 22.10%
Nonpartisan Jim Van Velzor 1,264 13.37%
Nonpartisan Henry Jensen 676 7.15%
Nonpartisan Ray Gawryluk 88 0.93%
Total votes 9,454 100.00%
1969 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral election[20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Nonpartisan Floyd Holland (incumbent) 5,028 61.13%
Nonpartisan Bill Nation 3,197 38.87%
Total votes 8,225 100.00%
1970 Laramie County Clerk Democratic primary[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Bill Nation 5,530 100.00%
Total votes 5,530 100.00%
1970 Laramie County Clerk election[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican John B. Huisman (incumbent) 9,755 51.50%
Democratic Bill Nation 9,187 48.50%
Total votes 18,942 100.00%
1980 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral primary[25]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Non-partisan Don Erickson (incumbent) 4,338 30.92%
Non-partisan Bill Nation 3,439 24.51%
Non-partisan John Rogers 3,375 24.05%
Non-partisan Mike Sullivan 2,629 18.74%
Non-partisan Carl Johnson 251 1.79%
Total votes 14,032 100.00%
1976 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral election[24]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Non-partisan Don Erickson 11,389 56.93%
Non-partisan Bill Nation (incumbent) 8,616 43.07%
Total votes 20,005 100.00%
1980 Cheyenne, Wyoming mayoral election[26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Non-partisan Don Erickson (incumbent) 11,751 57.54%
Non-partisan Bill Nation 8,671 42.46%
Total votes 20,422 100.00%

References
  1. "New Cheyenne Mayor". The Montana Standard. January 4, 1962. p. 10. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. "Cheyenne Mayor". Casper Star-Tribune. December 28, 1972. p. 13. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Cheyenne mayor sworn in". Casper Star-Tribune. January 4, 1977. p. 6. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Nation seeks another mayor term". Casper Star-Tribune. July 22, 1976. p. 33. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Cheyenne Mayor, Wife Will Attend Fair Here". Casper Star-Tribune. July 29, 1962. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Photographer Enters Cheyenne Mayor Race". Casper Morning Star. September 5, 1959. p. 23. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Cheyenne Primary Vote To Be Held Today". Casper Morning Star. October 20, 1959. p. 13. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Story, Keelan Final Cheyenne Candidates". Casper Morning Star. October 21, 1959. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Wyo. Voters Satisfied - Incumbents Win". Casper Morning Star. November 4, 1959. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Story-Nation In Cheyenne Mayor Race". Casper Morning Star. October 26, 1961. p. 11. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "New Mayor Is Elected In Cheyenne". Casper Star-Tribune. November 8, 1961. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Mayor of Cheyenne Seeks Re-Election". Casper Star-Tribune. October 2, 1963. p. 11. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Nation, Buckles Are Nominated". Casper Star-Tribune. October 23, 1963. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "New Mayor Is Elected In Cheyenne". Casper Morning Star. November 6, 1963. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Cheyenne Mayor Won't Run Again". Billings Gazette. June 30, 1965. p. 18. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. "Kingham Wins Cheyenne Job". Casper Star-Tribune. November 3, 1965. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "Nation Seeks Mayor's Post". Casper Star-Tribune. September 14, 1967. p. 20. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. "Cheyenne Nixes Nation". Billings Gazette. October 25, 1967. p. 3. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. "Former Mayor Runs For Cheyenne Post". Casper Star-Tribune. October 12, 1969. p. 7. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. "Cheyenne Has A New Mayor". Billings Gazette. November 5, 1969. p. 5. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. "Outgoing Cheyenne mayor becomes lobbyist". Billings Gazette. November 25, 1972. p. 4. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. "Mayoralty race may go to wire". Casper Star-Tribune. November 1, 1976. p. 6. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. "Laramie county spending is listed". Casper Star-Tribune. November 20, 1976. p. 5. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. "Cheyenne voters elect new mayor". Casper Star-Tribune. November 3, 1976. p. 6. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. "1980 mayoral primary results". Casper Star-Tribune. September 11, 1980. p. 19. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. "1980 mayoral election results". Casper Star-Tribune. September 11, 1980. p. 15. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. "Municipal Assn. Calls for Local Area Self Rule". Casper Star-Tribune. July 1, 1962. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. "Cities Group Formally Asks Extra Session". Casper Star-Tribune. June 19, 1963. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. "Cheyenne May Name Airport for Kennedy". Casper Star-Tribune. December 19, 1963. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. "Airport Name Change Plans Dropped". Casper Morning Star. December 20, 1963. p. 16. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. "Nazis seek quarters". Casper Star-Tribune. November 28, 1974. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. "Cheyenne officials deny charge of discrimination". Casper Star-Tribune. May 27, 1973. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. "HUD charges discrimination". Casper Star-Tribune. June 12, 1973. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. "Control of Legislature To Be Split". Casper Star-Tribune. November 4, 1964. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. "Wyoming House Demos Pick Committee Members". Billings Gazette. January 13, 1965. p. 14. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. "Stan Names Recreation COmmittee". Casper Star-Tribune. March 10, 1967. p. 13. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  37. "Bill Nation Announces He's Governor Candidate". Casper Star-Tribune. March 9, 1966. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  38. "Glover Will Direct Nation's Campaign". Casper Star-Tribune. May 10, 1966. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. "Finally ... It's Al Christian by 420 Votes". Billings Gazette. September 2, 1966. p. 32. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  40. "Bill Nation Running for County Clerk". Casper Star-Tribune. July 12, 1970. p. 2. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  41. "Laramie County Incumbents Fare Well in Primary". Casper Star-Tribune. August 21, 1970. p. 3. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  42. "1970 election results". Casper Star-Tribune. November 5, 1970. p. 1. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
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