Career Politician
While Meyers first ran for lieutenant governor without even being clear on the duties of the office, he soon became adept at those duties, the most important of which was to preside over the Washington State Senate. He became known as a leader of the left wing of the state Democratic Party, often putting him at odds with the more centrist Governor Martin, but getting on well with rising star Albert D. Rosellini. When, in the midst of the Great Depression, the left-wing Unemployed Citizens' League marched to Olympia, Washington to confront Governor Martin, Meyers opened his home to the marchers. He was re-elected five times before finally losing in 1952 in the Eisenhower landslide. During that time, he twice again ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Seattle, losing to Arthur B. Langlie in 1938 and to William F. Devin in 1946. He later ran successfully for Secretary of State of Washington in 1956 and served two terms in that office before being defeated in 1964 after a scandal related to the mishandling of the petition for an anti-gambling initiative. He is, as of 2010, the last Democrat in the state to hold the position of Secretary of State.
He had one last hurrah, entering the 1976 race to regain his position as secretary of state, but withdrew for health reasons. Meyers' son Victor Aloysius Meyers, Jr. served two terms in the state legislature (elected from the 31st District in 1958 and 1960) and ran unsuccessfully for state secretary of state in 1980, before dying in 1981 at the age of 57.
Read more about this topic: Victor Aloysius Meyers
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