P.J. Mills
Encyclopedia
Percy Joseph Mills, Jr., known as P. J. Mills (born January 10, 1934), is a retired businessman residing in New Orleans
, Louisiana
, who served from 1968-1972 as a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from Shreveport
, the seat of Caddo Parish
in the northwestern corner of the state.
Known as one of the "good-government" Young Turks in the state House, Mills did not seek reelection when the legislature was converted to single-member districts, effective in 1972. Instead, he ran in the 1971 Democratic
closed primary for lieutenant governor
. He finished fourth among ten candidates. The three-term incumbent, C.C. "Taddy" Aycock
of Franklin
in St. Mary Parish
, ran unsuccessfully for governor. Mills barely trailed the third-place candidate, businessman Edward Kennon
, then of Minden
, the seat of Webster Parish
, and later from Shreveport. Other candidates were State Representative Parey Branton
of Shongaloo
, also in Webster Parish, and State Senator
Jamar Adcock
of Monroe
, the seat of Ouachita Parish
. The office ultimately went to Democrat Jimmy Fitzmorris
, a former member of the New Orleans City Council. On February 1, 1972, Fitzmorris handily defeated the GOP nominee, former State Representative Morley A. Hudson
of Shreveport.
In 1972, newly-elected Democratic Governor Edwin Washington Edwards named Mills as the first director of the Louisiana Superport. Two later state representatives, Terry Gee of Jefferson Parish
and Dale Sittig
of Eunice
in St. Landry Parish
, were later named directors of the Superport, based at Lafayette
, by Republican Governors Mike Foster and Bobby Jindal
, respectively.
In 1975, Mills ran again for statewide office when Louisiana Secretary of State Wade O. Martin, Jr.
, stepped down to run unsuccessfully for governor against Edwin Edwards and State Senator Robert G. Jones of Lake Charles
, son of former Governor Sam Houston Jones. Mills, with 49 percent of the ballots, led in the first-ever nonpartisan blanket primary held in Louisiana. He was forced into a runoff, called the general election
in Louisiana even though it may feature two candidates from the same party, with State Senator Paul J. Hardy of St. Martinville
in St. Martin Parish
. Hardy prevailed against Mills, 388,780 votes (51.5 percent) to 366,510 (48.5 percent). Hardy later switched from Democrat to Republican affiliation and won the office of lieutenant governor in 1987 but was unseated in 1991 and thereafter retired from politics.
Mills graduated in 1951 from Catholic High School in his native Baton Rouge
. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration
degree and a master's degree
in public administration
from Louisiana State University
in Baton Rouge. He is married and the father of six children, including Douglass C. Mills, Christopher Veau Mills, and Andrew Laughlin Mills. He is a retired banker by profession in Shreveport and later Baton Rouge. In 1967, he was named "Outstanding Young Man of the Year" by the Shreveport Junior Chamber. As a legislator, he was the secretary to the Council for Governmental Reorganization.
Prior to retirement in 2000, Mills was president of the large Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. In 1999, Mills was named "Businessperson of the Year" in Baton Rouge.
In 1988, Mills was appointed chief of staff to newly-elected Governor Buddy Roemer
, who in 1991 switched affiliation to the Republican Party. At the time, Mills told the New Orleans Times-Picayune
that the party bolt had become "a case of working out the details. This is a big thing for him."
It is unclear if Mills, like many of his former political associates, also switched parties, but he donated to the election of Republican David Vitter
in 1999 in Vitter's successful race that year against fellow Republican David C. Treen
for the vacancy in the United States House of Representatives
created by the controversial resignation of Republican Bob Livingston
. However, Mills also contributed to Vitter’s’ Democratic predecessor, John Breaux
.
One of Mills’ ancestors, Robert Mills
, a native of Charleston
, South Carolina
, designed the Washington Monument
in Washington, D.C.
, which opened to the public in 1888.
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, 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...
, who served from 1968-1972 as a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
from Shreveport
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
, the seat of Caddo Parish
Caddo Parish, Louisiana
Caddo Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Shreveport; as of 2000, the population was 252,161...
in the northwestern corner of the state.
Known as one of the "good-government" Young Turks in the state House, Mills did not seek reelection when the legislature was converted to single-member districts, effective in 1972. Instead, he ran in the 1971 Democratic
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...
closed primary for lieutenant governor
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana
The Office of Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana is the second highest state office in Louisiana. The current Lieutenant Governor is Jay Dardenne, a Republican...
. He finished fourth among ten candidates. The three-term incumbent, C.C. "Taddy" Aycock
Clarence C. Aycock
Clarence C. "Taddy" Aycock , a conservative Democrat from Franklin in St. Mary Parish, was the only three-term lieutenant governor in modern Louisiana history. He served from 1960 to 1972. Aycock failed in his only bid for governor in the 1971 Democratic primary...
of Franklin
Franklin, Louisiana
Franklin is a city in and the parish seat of St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 8,354 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Morgan City Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
in St. Mary Parish
St. Mary Parish, Louisiana
St. Mary Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Franklin. As of 2000, the population was 53,500.The Morgan City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of St. Mary Parish.-Geography:...
, ran unsuccessfully for governor. Mills barely trailed the third-place candidate, businessman Edward Kennon
Edward Kennon
Francis Edward Kennon, Jr. , usually known as Ed Kennon is a multi-millionaire Shreveport real-estate developer and a former Democratic member of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, the regulatory body for oil, natural gas, and utilities. He represented north Louisiana on the commission for...
, then of Minden
Minden, Louisiana
Minden is a city in the American state of Louisiana. It serves as the parish seat of Webster Parish and is located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish. The population, which has been stable since 1960, was 13,027 at the 2000 census...
, the seat of Webster Parish
Webster Parish, Louisiana
Webster Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The seat of the parish is Minden. In 2010, its population was 41,207....
, and later from Shreveport. Other candidates were State Representative Parey Branton
Parey Branton
Parey Pershing Branton, Sr. , was a businessman from Shongaloo, Louisiana, who was from 1960 to 1972 a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from what is now District 10 in Webster Parish...
of Shongaloo
Shongaloo, Louisiana
Shongaloo is a village in Webster Parish, Louisiana, United States.West of Shongaloo on Louisiana Highway 2 is Munn Hill, a homestead of Daniel and Rebecca Munn, established on July 26, 1900....
, also in Webster Parish, and State Senator
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
Jamar Adcock
Jamar Adcock
Jamar William Adcock was a high-profile banker and a Democratic state senator from Monroe, Louisiana, who served from 1960 to 1972...
of Monroe
Monroe, Louisiana
Monroe is a city in and the parish seat of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,107, making it the eighth largest city in Louisiana. A July 1, 2007, United States Census Bureau estimate placed the population at 51,208, but 51,636...
, the seat of Ouachita Parish
Ouachita Parish, Louisiana
-National protected areas:* Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge* D'Arbonne National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 147,250 people, 55,216 households, and 38,319 families residing in the parish. The population density was 241 people per square mile...
. The office ultimately went to Democrat Jimmy Fitzmorris
Jimmy Fitzmorris
James Edward "Jimmy" Fitzmorris, Jr. , is a New Orleans businessman and civic leader who was the Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1972–1980...
, a former member of the New Orleans City Council. On February 1, 1972, Fitzmorris handily defeated the GOP nominee, former State Representative Morley A. Hudson
Morley A. Hudson
Morley Alvin Hudson , was a Shreveport businessman, engineer, civic leader, and a pioneer of the modern Republican Party in Louisiana.Hudson was born in San Antonio, Texas, the son of Oscar Hudson and the former Ruth Morley...
of Shreveport.
In 1972, newly-elected Democratic Governor Edwin Washington Edwards named Mills as the first director of the Louisiana Superport. Two later state representatives, Terry Gee of Jefferson Parish
Jefferson Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Parish is a parish in Louisiana, United States that includes most of the suburbs of New Orleans. The seat of parish government is Gretna....
and Dale Sittig
Dale Sittig
Clifton Dale Sittig is the director of the Louisiana Offshore Terminal Authority, who previously served from 1995-2008 as a Democratic member of his state’s Public Service Commission and from 1983-1995 as a state representative from Eunice in St. Landry Parish in south Louisiana.Sittig graduated...
of Eunice
Eunice, Louisiana
Eunice is a city in Acadia, Evangeline and St. Landry parishes in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The population was 11,499 at the 2000 census.The St...
in St. Landry Parish
St. Landry Parish, Louisiana
St. Landry Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is at the heart of Acadian/Cajun culture and heritage in Louisiana. The parish seat is Opelousas. According to the 2010 census, the population of St. Landry Parish is 83,384.St...
, were later named directors of the Superport, based at Lafayette
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
, by Republican Governors Mike Foster 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....
, respectively.
In 1975, Mills ran again for statewide office when Louisiana Secretary of State Wade O. Martin, Jr.
Wade O. Martin, Jr.
Wade Omer Martin, Jr. was the Democratic Secretary of State of Louisiana under five governors, having served from 1944 to 1976...
, stepped down to run unsuccessfully for governor against Edwin Edwards and State Senator Robert G. Jones of Lake Charles
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Located in Calcasieu Parish, a major cultural, industrial, and educational center in the southwest region of the state, and one of the most important in...
, son of former Governor Sam Houston Jones. Mills, with 49 percent of the ballots, led in the first-ever nonpartisan blanket primary held in Louisiana. He was forced into a runoff, called 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...
in Louisiana even though it may feature two candidates from the same party, with State Senator Paul J. Hardy of St. Martinville
St. Martinville, Louisiana
St. Martinville is a city in and the parish seat of St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on Bayou Teche, sixteen miles south of Breaux Bridge, eighteen miles southeast of Lafayette, and nine miles north of New Iberia. The population was 6,989 at the 2000 census. It is part of the...
in St. Martin Parish
St. Martin Parish, Louisiana
St. Martin Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is St. Martinville. As of the 2000 census, the population was 48,583.St...
. Hardy prevailed against Mills, 388,780 votes (51.5 percent) to 366,510 (48.5 percent). Hardy later switched from Democrat to Republican affiliation and won the office of lieutenant governor in 1987 but was unseated in 1991 and thereafter retired from politics.
Mills graduated in 1951 from Catholic High School in his native Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration
Bachelor of Business Administration
The Bachelor of Business Administration is a bachelor's degree in Commerce and business administration. In most universities, the degree is conferred upon a student after four years of full-time study in one or more areas of business concentrations; see below...
degree and a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in public administration
Public administration
Public Administration houses the implementation of government policy and an academic discipline that studies this implementation and that prepares civil servants for this work. As a "field of inquiry with a diverse scope" its "fundamental goal.....
from Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge. He is married and the father of six children, including Douglass C. Mills, Christopher Veau Mills, and Andrew Laughlin Mills. He is a retired banker by profession in Shreveport and later Baton Rouge. In 1967, he was named "Outstanding Young Man of the Year" by the Shreveport Junior Chamber. As a legislator, he was the secretary to the Council for Governmental Reorganization.
Prior to retirement in 2000, Mills was president of the large Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. In 1999, Mills was named "Businessperson of the Year" in Baton Rouge.
In 1988, Mills was appointed chief of staff to newly-elected Governor Buddy Roemer
Buddy Roemer
Charles Elson "Buddy" Roemer III is an American politician who served as the 52nd Governor of Louisiana, from 1988 to 1992. He was elected as a Democrat but switched to the Republican Party on March 11, 1991...
, who in 1991 switched affiliation to the Republican Party. At the time, Mills told the New Orleans Times-Picayune
New Orleans Times-Picayune
The Times-Picayune is a daily newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.-History:Established as The Picayune in 1837 by Francis Lumsden and George Wilkins Kendall, the paper's initial price was one picayune—a Spanish coin equivalent to 6¼¢ .Under Eliza Jane Nicholson, who inherited the...
that the party bolt had become "a case of working out the details. This is a big thing for him."
It is unclear if Mills, like many of his former political associates, also switched parties, but he donated to the election of Republican David Vitter
David Vitter
David Vitter is the junior United States Senator from Louisiana and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he served in the United States House of Representatives, representing the suburban Louisiana's 1st congressional district. He served as a member of the Louisiana House of...
in 1999 in Vitter's successful race that year against fellow Republican David C. Treen
David C. Treen
David Conner "Dave" Treen, Sr. , was an American attorney and politician from Mandeville, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana – the first Republican Governor of the U.S. state of Louisiana since Reconstruction. He was the first Republican in modern times to have served in the U.S...
for the vacancy in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
created by the controversial resignation of Republican Bob Livingston
Bob Livingston
Robert Linlithgow "Bob" Livingston Jr. is a Washington, D.C.-based lobbyist and a former Republican U.S. Representative from Louisiana...
. However, Mills also contributed to Vitter’s’ Democratic predecessor, John Breaux
John Breaux
John Berlinger Breaux is a former United States senator from Louisiana who served from 1987 until 2005. He was also a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987. He was considered one of the more conservative national legislators from the Democratic Party...
.
One of Mills’ ancestors, Robert Mills
Robert Mills (architect)
Robert Mills , most famously known for designing the Washington Monument, is sometimes called the first native born American to become a professional architect, though Charles Bulfinch perhaps has a clearer claim to this honor...
, a native of Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, designed the Washington Monument
Washington Monument
The Washington Monument is an obelisk near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate the first U.S. president, General George Washington...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, which opened to the public in 1888.