Marvin Griffin
Marvin Griffin ( born September 4, 1907 in Bainbridge, Georgia; † 13 June 1982) was an American politician and governor of Georgia.
Early years and political rise
Griffin graduated from the Military Academy in 1929 " The Citadel " in Charleston, South Carolina. He then taught at the Randolph -Macon Academy in Front Royal, Virginia. He also married Mary Elizabeth Smith, with whom he should have two children. When his father became ill in 1933, the family returned to Bainbridge; he became editor of the family newspaper "Post Searchlight ". In 1934 he undertook his first political steps by leaning in the National Assembly had (general assembly) of Georgia choose. Two years later, failed in his attempt to be elected to the House of Representatives of the United States. Instead, he received from Governor Eurith Rivers an administrative post in his government.
During World War II he joined the army and rose to lieutenant colonel. He was commander of a unit in the South Pacific. 1944 appointed him governor Ellis Arnall as a staff officer in the leadership corps of the National Guard. He held until 1947 this office. 1948 took place in Georgia due to a constitutional crisis preceded governor elections. Griffin was honored for Lieutenant Governor, 1950 he was confirmed at the next regular election in that office. Griffin was the first Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, the fact exercised this only recently been established in the Constitution office.
Governor of Georgia
In 1954 he was a candidate then even for the office of governor, and was elected as the successor of Herman Talmadge. As governor, he raised the income tax to compensate for revenue shortfalls. With the money of the road in Georgia was funded. Total streets were paved with a total length of 12,000 miles in rural areas. Even education was expanded and increased the budget for this area by 50%. On the other hand, Griffin was a strict segregationist. Although the Supreme Court of the United States had in 1954 declared in Brown v. Board of Education, shortly before Griffins election as governor, racial segregation in schools unconstitutional, Griffin refused to implement the ruling. Nevertheless, he made sure that his education reform also zugutekam the black fellow citizens. However, the schools of whites for blacks were still prohibited. The process of overcoming this state only began slowly in 1961, when Griffin was no longer in office.
In the course of his tenure, his government increasingly came under suspicion of corruption. Some of his ministers were convicted of various offenses, including the brother of the governor was allegedly involved in illegal activities. A commission also determined against the governor himself; but there was no indictment. Because of these shortcomings managed not to be re-elected him in 1958. He thus left in early 1959 to hold office.
Evening of life and death
1962 Griffin ran again for the office of governor. However, since the corruption scandals during his tenure were not forgotten and were led by his opponents in the election campaign, he had no chance to win the elections. In 1968, he was with the American Independent Party, a third, hapless, Party in the upcoming presidential election, at times as a candidate for the vice-presidency under discussion. In the end he was not nominated. In the 1970s, it drew the previous Democrats Griffin more and more to the Republicans. He supported the election campaigns of Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan. On June 13, 1982 Marvin Griffin died of lung cancer.