Evelyn Gandy

Evelyn Gandy
Evelyn Gandy
26th Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
	In office; January 20, 1976 – January 22, 1980
Governor	Cliff Finch
Preceded by	William Winter
Succeeded by	Brad Dye
9th Insurance Commissioner of Mississippi
	In office; January 18, 1972 – January 20, 1976
Governor	Bill Waller
Preceded by	Walter Dell Davis
Succeeded by	George Dale
44th and 46th State Treasurer of Mississippi
	In office; January 16, 1968 – January 18, 1972
Governor	John Bell Williams
Preceded by	William Winter
Succeeded by	Brad Dye
	In office; January 19, 1960 – January 21, 1964
Governor	Ross Barnett
Preceded by	Robert D. Morrow, Sr.
Succeeded by	William Winter
Personal details
Born	September 4, 1920; Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Died	December 23, 2007 (aged 87)
Political party	Democratic

Edythe Evelyn Gandy (September 4, 1920 – December 23, 2007) was an American politician who was the first female elected to a statewide office in Mississippi– that of Treasurer for the State of Mississippi. Later, she was elected insurance commissioner and 26th Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi.

Early life

Born in Hattiesburg, Gandy attended the University of Southern Mississippi and studied law at the University of Mississippi School of Law in Oxford. As the only woman in her 1943 law school class, she won the state oratorical contest. She was also the first woman editor of the Mississippi Law Journal and the first woman to be elected president of the law school student body[1].

Following graduation from law school, Gandy served as secretary and campaign assistant to segregationist Mississippi Governor and United States Senator Theodore Bilbo. After Bilbo's death in 1947, Gandy returned to Hattiesburg to practice law.

Political life

A Democrat, Gandy was elected in 1947 to the Mississippi House of Representatives from Forrest County. Gandy earned a more progressive record in the statehouse, having supported legislation that favored increased funding for education and improved access to human services. Gandy also co-authored legislation that would create the University of Mississippi Medical Center, the state's only medical school and teaching hospital at the time.

In 1959, Gandy was the first woman to be appointed Mississippi's Assistant Attorney General, and in the same year, she was elected state treasurer. As treasurer, Gandy was the first to require that state monies be maintained in interest-bearing accounts. In 1963, she was elected to a second term as treasurer without opposition.

In 1972, she became the first woman elected as Insurance Commissioner, a position through which she worked to tighten regulations and scrutiny on the insurance industry.

In 1975, Gandy was elected Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi, the first woman to hold that office in Mississippi, and one of the first women in the country to hold such a seat in state government.

Gandy was defeated twice in her bids for the Office of Governor of Mississippi. She ran for governor in 1979 but was defeated in the Democratic primary runoff primary by William Winter, 386,174 (56.6 percent) to 295,835 (43.4 percent). Eliminated in the primary was Jim Herring, a lawyer from Canton, who left the party and from 2001 to 2008 served as the Mississippi Republican Party chairman. Gandy lost the 1983 Democratic primary as well to Attorney General William "Bill" Allain, 405,348 (52.4 percent) to 367,953 (47.5 percent)). On her death, Winter called his former intraparty rival Gandy "one of Mississippi's most conscientious and able public leaders."[2] While Gandy renounced her segregationist views in her gubernatorial campaigns, it is believed that those positions and her close relationship with Bilbo eroded her support among African Americans, a key segment of voters in the Mississippi Democratic Party. From 1983 until her death, she was engaged in private law practice in Hattiesburg. Gandy remained active in Mississippi Democratic politics until her death. She publicly endorsed Al Gore for U.S. President in 2000 and also attended Democratic National Chairman Howard Dean's visit to Mississippi in 2005.

Death

Gandy died at age 87 after a lengthy bout with progressive supranuclear palsy, a debilitating illness similar to Parkinson's disease. She never married or had children.

Her body lay in state on December 27, 2007, in the rotunda of the Mississippi State Capitol building in downtown Jackson. U.S. and Mississippi flags on all state buildings and grounds were flown at half-staff from sunrise on December 27, 2007 until sunset on December 28, 2007.

Legacy

In 2006, the Evelyn Gandy Parkway was opened, near Petal in her native Forrest County.

Awards and honors

State of Alabama Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Aide-de-camp, commissioned by Alabama Governor George Wallace; 1972
State of Kentucky Kentucky Colonel, commissioned by Kentucky Governor Wendell H. Ford; 1972
Mississippi College Service of Humanity Award; 1976
Blue Mountain College Honorary Degree of Doctor of Law; 1977
Paul Harris Fellow-Rotary Club 1978;
National Mental Health Association Humanitarian Award; 1979
Mississippi State University Mississippi Woman of the Year Award; 1980
State of Mississippi Mississippian of the Year in Government; 1981
Exchange Club "Golden Deeds" Award; 1982
Mississippi College School of Law Award for Excellence in Law; 1984
Mississippi Women's Political Caucus Susan B. Anthony Award for Outstanding Service to the State of Mississippi; 1984
University of Southern Mississippi Alumni Hall of Fame;1985
Mississippi University for Women Medal of Excellence;1991
The Mississippi Bar Lifetime Achievement Award; 1994
Women's Political Network First Annual Award for Distinguished Service; 1994
Mississippi Democratic Party James O. Eastland Award; 1995
American Bar Association Margaret Brant Women Lawyers of Achievement Award; 1997
Mississippi Association of Women Lawyers Lifetime Achievement Award; 1998
Hattiesburg Women's Forum Leadership Award; 1998
Lindy Boggs Women in Public Service Award; 1998
The Mississippi Bar Chief Justice Award; 1998
The Mississippi Bar Susie Blue Buchanan Award; 2003

References

"Gandy (Edythe Evelyn) Collection, McCain Library and Archives, The University of Southern Mississippi". lib.uam.edu. Retrieved 2019-05-28.
Associated Press (December 25, 2007). "Longtime Mississippi politician dies at 87". Houston Chronicle.

External links

(University of Southern Mississippi's "Edythe Evelyn Gandy Papers")
Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Election ("Gubernatorial Primaries")

Political offices
Preceded by Robert D. Morrow, Sr.	Treasurer of Mississippi 1960–1964	Succeeded by William F. Winter
Preceded by William F. Winter	Treasurer of Mississippi 1968–1972	Succeeded by Brad Dye
Preceded by William F. Winter	Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi 1976-1980	Succeeded by Brad Dye

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[1] "Gandy (Edythe Evelyn) Collection, McCain Library and Archives, The University of Southern Mississippi". lib.uam.edu. Retrieved 2019-05-28.

[2] Associated Press (December 25, 2007). "Longtime Mississippi politician dies at 87". Houston Chronicle.