Secretary of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
White was first elected to the open state-wide office of Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth in 1960 at the age of 31. The incumbent secretary, Joseph D. Ward, decided to run for governor that year (and lost to John A. Volpe in the general election). White won the Democratic Party nomination at the state convention with the crucial assistance of his father, and father in law, who called in political debts in order to obtain enough votes to win the nomination; White became the party nominee on the third ballot of the convention, thus appearing on the ballot as a Democrat in the general election in November. In the general election, White surpassed a rising Republican, Edward W. Brooke (who in later years was elected U.S. Senator).
In 1962, White was reelected to a second two-year term, and in 1966, reelected to a four-year term, and served in office through 1967, resigning from the office December 20, 1967, after he won the Boston mayoral election that year.
Read more about this topic: Kevin White (mayor)
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