Bill Clements

William Perry "Bill" Clements, Jr. (born April 17, 1917) served two nonconsecutive terms as governor of Texas, most recently serving as the immediate predecessor to Ann Richards.

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Born in Dallas, Texas, Clements worked as an oil driller for many years, eventually founding SEDCO, the world's largest offshore drilling company. Clements entered politics as the Deputy United States Secretary of Defense under Presidents Nixon and Ford.

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In 1979, Clements succeeded scandal-plagued Democrat Dolph Briscoe to become governor of Texas. Clements was elected as the first Republican governor of the state since Reconstruction following the American civil war. Clements ran for reelection in 1982, but was defeated by Mark White because of sagging economic numbers.

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Clements then served as chairman of the board of governors of Southern Methodist University before opting to run for governor again in 1986, where he was victorious again. Clements finished his term, opted not to run for governor again and was succeeded by Democrat Ann Richards in 1991.

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During his tenure, Clements worked to reduce crime, improve education and the state's economy and worked to improve local relations with Mexico, especially on issues important to their mutual borders, like immigration and the drug war.

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1917: 1917 was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar....

Governor of Texas: Redirect List of Governors of Texas...

Ann Richards: Ann Willis Richards (born September 1, 1933), n?e Dorothy Ann Willis, is an American politician from Texas. She rose to nationwide fame as the keynote speaker at the 1988 Democratic National Convention leading up to the 1988 presidential election. She served as Governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995, ...

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