David F. Cargo
Encyclopedia
David Francis Cargo the 22nd Governor of New Mexico
, having served between 1967 and 1971.
Cargo was born in Dowagiac, Michigan
, the eldest of three children born to Francis and Mary (née Harton) Cargo. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School
(LLB: 1957).
He represented the Albuquerque area in the New Mexico House of Representatives
from 1963 to 1967, when he was elected governor at the age of thirty-seven. As a representative he won one of the first lawsuits forcing proportional representation
in the state legislature. He remains one of the youngest governors elected to date in U.S. history
, along with Harold Stassen
in Minnesota
(1938), Bill Clinton
in Arkansas
(1978), Christopher "Kit" Bond
and Matt Blunt
in Missouri
(1972) and (2004), respectively, and Bobby Jindal
in Louisiana
(2007).
Republican, more in the Nelson Rockefeller
mode than in the Barry Goldwater
image. He had difficulty winning the Republican primaries in both 1966 and 1968. Each time he faced the more conservative
Clifford J. Hawley of Santa Fe
. In 1966, Cargo won with 17,836 (51.8 percent) to Hawley's 16,588 (48.2 percent). He improved in 1968, when he defeated Hawley, 28,014 (54.9 percent) to 23,052 (45.1 percent).
Cargo won the general election of 1966, when he barely defeated Democrat
T.E. Lusk. Cargo received 134,625 votes (51.7 percent) to Lusk's 125,587 (48.3 percent). Running again in 1968, Cargo won by an even smaller margin, 160,140 (50.5 percent) to Democrat Fabian Chavez, Jr.,'s 157,230 ballots (49.5 percent).
As governor, Cargo started the state film commission, which has brought millions of dollars in revenue to the state of New Mexico. Cargo established ties to Hollywood and was even asked to appear in several films. In 1971 he made a cameo appearance
in Bunny O'Hare
, which starred Bette Davis
and Ernest Borgnine
. During his first campaign for governor, he was known as "Lonesome Dave."
leader in New Mexico
. Carter polled 32,122 (57.8 percent) to Cargo's 17,951 (32.3 percent). Andy Carter then lost the general election
to incumbent
Democrat
Joseph M. Montoya, who later became nationally known as a member of the Senate Watergate Committee.
From 1973 until 1985, Cargo relocated to Lake Oswego, Oregon
, with his wife Ida Jo and five children, Veronica, David, Patrick, Elena, and Eamon. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for State Treasurer in Oregon in 1984.
After returning to New Mexico Cargo won the Republican nomination for Congress, but was badly defeated by the incumbent, Democrat Bill Richardson in 1986. Cargo ran for Mayor of Albuquerque in 1993, but was defeated by Martin Chávez
. He tried for a gubernatorial comeback in 1994. Cargo ran a poor fourth (13 percent) in the primary and lost to Gary Johnson
, a libertarian
Republican. Johnson won the general election
, having benefited from 1994 being a heavily Republican year nationwide.
Cargo continues to practice law
in Albuquerque. In 2010 he wrote an autobiography titled Lonesome Dave.
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, having served between 1967 and 1971.
Cargo was born in Dowagiac, Michigan
Dowagiac, Michigan
Dowagiac is a city in Cass County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,147 at the 2000 census. It is part of the South Bend–Mishawaka, IN-MI, Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, the eldest of three children born to Francis and Mary (née Harton) Cargo. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School is the law school of the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Founded in 1859, the school has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, most of whom are seeking Juris Doctor or Master of Laws degrees, although the school also offers a Doctor of Juridical...
(LLB: 1957).
He represented the Albuquerque area in the New Mexico House of Representatives
New Mexico House of Representatives
The New Mexico House of Representatives is the lower house of the New Mexico State Legislature.There are 70 members of the House. Each member represents roughly 25,980 residents of New Mexico.The Speaker of the House is Ben Luján .-Composition:...
from 1963 to 1967, when he was elected governor at the age of thirty-seven. As a representative he won one of the first lawsuits forcing proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
in the state legislature. He remains one of the youngest governors elected to date in U.S. history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, along with Harold Stassen
Harold Stassen
Harold Edward Stassen was the 25th Governor of Minnesota from 1939 to 1943. After service in World War II, from 1948 to 1953 he was president of the University of Pennsylvania...
in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
(1938), Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
in Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
(1978), Christopher "Kit" Bond
Kit Bond
Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond is a former United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, he defeated Democrat Harriett Woods by a margin of 53%-47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004...
and Matt Blunt
Matt Blunt
Matthew Roy Blunt served as the 54th Governor of Missouri from 2005 to 2009. Before his election as governor, Blunt served ten years in the United States Navy, was elected to serve in the Missouri General Assembly in 1998 and as Missouri's Secretary of State in 2000.A Republican, Blunt was elected...
in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
(1972) and (2004), respectively, and Bobby Jindal
Bobby Jindal
Piyush "Bobby" Jindal is the 55th and current Governor of Louisiana and formerly a member of the United States House of Representatives. He is a member of the Republican Party....
in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
(2007).
Election as governor, 1966 and 1968
Cargo was considered a liberalLiberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
Republican, more in the Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...
mode than in the Barry Goldwater
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
image. He had difficulty winning the Republican primaries in both 1966 and 1968. Each time he faced the more conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
Clifford J. Hawley of Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
. In 1966, Cargo won with 17,836 (51.8 percent) to Hawley's 16,588 (48.2 percent). He improved in 1968, when he defeated Hawley, 28,014 (54.9 percent) to 23,052 (45.1 percent).
Cargo won the general election of 1966, when he barely defeated Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
T.E. Lusk. Cargo received 134,625 votes (51.7 percent) to Lusk's 125,587 (48.3 percent). Running again in 1968, Cargo won by an even smaller margin, 160,140 (50.5 percent) to Democrat Fabian Chavez, Jr.,'s 157,230 ballots (49.5 percent).
As governor, Cargo started the state film commission, which has brought millions of dollars in revenue to the state of New Mexico. Cargo established ties to Hollywood and was even asked to appear in several films. In 1971 he made a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in Bunny O'Hare
Bunny O'Hare
Bunny O'Hare is a 1971 American comedy film directed by Gerd Oswald, starring Bette Davis and Ernest Borgnine. The screenplay by Coslough Johnson and Stanley Z...
, which starred Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
and Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
. During his first campaign for governor, he was known as "Lonesome Dave."
Later losing campaigns
Cargo could not seek a third two-year term in 1970. Gubernatorial terms were changed to one, four year term with the 1970 election and subsequently two, four year terms with the 1986 election. Cargo hence ran for the U.S. Senate in 1970, but he lost the Republican primary to the conservative choice, Anderson "Andy" Carter, who was later a Ronald ReaganRonald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
leader in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
. Carter polled 32,122 (57.8 percent) to Cargo's 17,951 (32.3 percent). Andy Carter then lost the general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
to incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Joseph M. Montoya, who later became nationally known as a member of the Senate Watergate Committee.
From 1973 until 1985, Cargo relocated to Lake Oswego, Oregon
Lake Oswego, Oregon
Lake Oswego is a city located primarily in Clackamas County in the U.S. state of Oregon. Small portions of the city are also located in neighboring Multnomah and Washington counties. Located south of Portland surrounding the Oswego Lake, the town was founded in 1847 and incorporated as Oswego in...
, with his wife Ida Jo and five children, Veronica, David, Patrick, Elena, and Eamon. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for State Treasurer in Oregon in 1984.
After returning to New Mexico Cargo won the Republican nomination for Congress, but was badly defeated by the incumbent, Democrat Bill Richardson in 1986. Cargo ran for Mayor of Albuquerque in 1993, but was defeated by Martin Chávez
Martin Chavez
Martin Joseph Chávez Chávez is a former three-term mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico and New Mexico State Senator. He currently serves as the Executive Director of ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability USA. and Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Center for Green Schools at U.S. Green...
. He tried for a gubernatorial comeback in 1994. Cargo ran a poor fourth (13 percent) in the primary and lost to Gary Johnson
Gary Johnson
Gary Johnson may refer to:*Gary Johnson , former Governor of New Mexico and candidate for President in 2012*Gary Johnson , American politician, Wisconsin State Assembly...
, a libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
Republican. Johnson won the general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
, having benefited from 1994 being a heavily Republican year nationwide.
Cargo continues to practice law
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
in Albuquerque. In 2010 he wrote an autobiography titled Lonesome Dave.