{{Short description|American politician (1918–2014)}} {{For|the Illinois Attorney General|Patrick J. Lucey (Illinois lawyer)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2011}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Patrick Lucey | image = Patrick Lucey.png | caption = Lucey in 1971 | office = [[United States Ambassador to Mexico]] | president = [[Jimmy Carter]] | term_start = July 19, 1977 | term_end = October 31, 1979 | predecessor = [[Joseph J. Jova|Joseph Jova]] | successor = [[Julian Nava]] | order1 = 38th [[Governor of Wisconsin]] | lieutenant1 = [[Martin J. Schreiber|Martin Schreiber]] | term_start1 = January 4, 1971 | term_end1 = July 6, 1977 | predecessor1 = [[Warren P. Knowles|Warren Knowles]] | successor1 = Martin Schreiber | office2 = 36th [[Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin]] | governor2 = Warren Knowles | term_start2 = January 4, 1965 | term_end2 = January 2, 1967 | predecessor2 = [[Jack B. Olson|Jack Olson]] | successor2 = Jack Olson | office3 = Chair of the [[Democratic Party of Wisconsin|Wisconsin Democratic Party]] | term_start3 = 1957 | term_end3 = 1963 | predecessor3 = [[Philleo Nash]] | successor3 = Louis Hanson | office4 = Member of the [[Wisconsin State Assembly]]<br>from [[Crawford County, Wisconsin|Crawford County]] | term_start4 = 1949 | term_end4 = 1951 | predecessor4 = [[Donald C. McDowell]] | successor4 = [[Rodney J. Satter]] | birth_name = Patrick Joseph Lucey | birth_date = {{birth date|1918|3|21}} | birth_place = [[La Crosse, Wisconsin]], U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2014|5|10|1918|3|21}} | death_place = [[Milwaukee]], Wisconsin, U.S. | spouse = {{Married|Jean Vlasis|1951|2011|end=died}} | children = 3 | party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] (before 1979; 1980–2014)<br>[[Independent (politician)|Independent]] (1979–1980) | education = [[University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)|University of St. Thomas, Minnesota]]<br>[[University of Wisconsin–Madison|University of Wisconsin, Madison]] {{small|([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])}} }} '''Patrick Joseph Lucey''' (March 21, 1918 – May 10, 2014) was an American politician who served as the [[United States Ambassador to Mexico]] from 1977 to 1979.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=1959&search_term=lucey |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611143020/http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=1959&search_term=lucey |archive-date=June 11, 2011 |title=Lucey, Patrick J. 1918}}</ref> A member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], he previously served as the 38th [[governor of Wisconsin]] from 1971 to 1977. Lucey was also the running mate of independent presidential nominee [[John B. Anderson]] in the [[1980 United States presidential election|1980 presidential election]].
Born in [[La Crosse, Wisconsin]], Lucey served in state and local government offices after graduating from the [[University of Wisconsin–Madison|University of Wisconsin]]. He served in the [[Quartermaster Corps (United States Army)|Quartermaster Corps]] of the [[United States Army]] during [[World War II]]. He held the position of [[Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin]] from 1965 to 1967 and unsuccessfully challenged Governor [[Warren P. Knowles]] in the [[1966 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|1966 gubernatorial election]].
Lucey was elected governor of Wisconsin in the [[1970 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|1970 gubernatorial election]] and was reelected [[1974 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|in 1974]]. He resigned as governor in 1977, when he accepted President [[Jimmy Carter]]'s appointment to the position of [[United States Ambassador to Mexico]]. As governor, Lucey presided over the merger of the Wisconsin State University system and the [[University of Wisconsin System]]. In 1980, he agreed to serve as the [[running mate]] to John B. Anderson, a former [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] congressman running an independent campaign. The ticket of Anderson and Lucey won 6.6% of the popular vote in the 1980 election, which saw Carter unseated by Republican nominee [[Ronald Reagan]].
==Early life and education== Lucey was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on March 21, 1918, the son of Ella (McNamara) and Gregory Lucey.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iCEl1sqlZLQC&q=Gregory+Ella+Lucey&pg=PA234|title=Wisconsin Encyclopedia|isbn=9781878592613|last1=Herman|first1=Jennifer|date=January 2008|publisher=State History Publications }}</ref> He grew up in the village of [[Ferryville, Wisconsin]], and graduated from [[Campion High School]] in nearby [[Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin]], in 1935.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://campion-knights.org/Notables/|title=Campion Graduate Notables|website=campion-knights.org|accessdate=July 7, 2023}}</ref> He later attended [[University of St. Thomas (Minnesota)|St. Thomas College]] in [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]]. During [[World War II]] Lucey was [[Conscription in the United States|drafted]] and served in the [[Quartermaster Corps (United States Army)|United States Army Quartermaster Corps]] in the [[Caribbean]] until he was discharged with the rank of captain in 1945.<ref>{{cite news |title=Anderson's Running Mate: Patrick Joseph Lucey |author=Richard D. Lyons |newspaper=[[New York Times]] |date=26 August 1980 }}</ref> After the war, Lucey graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1946 with a B.A. in philosophy.<ref name=dictionary>{{cite web |url=http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=1959 |title=Lucey, Patrick J. 1918 |work=Dictionary of Wisconsin History |publisher=Wisconsin Historical Society |access-date=21 April 2012 |archive-date=May 12, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140512222244/http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=1959 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Political career== [[File:President John F. Kennedy Meets with Patrick J. Lucey, State Democratic Chairman of Wisconsin (02).jpg|thumb|left|Lucey with President [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1961]] Lucey served as justice of the peace in [[Ferryville, Wisconsin]], in 1946. He also served on the De Soto School Board and was board treasurer in 1946.<ref>''Wisconsin Blue Book 1966''. Biographical Sketch of Patrick J. Lucey, p. 4.</ref> Lucey served in the [[Wisconsin State Assembly]] from 1949 to 1951.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/lucero-ludlam.html|title = The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Luce-aoelua to Ludlam}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=wisc.edu|access-date=7 July 2023|title=Members of the Legislature |url=https://images.library.wisc.edu/WI/EFacs/WIBlueBks/BlueBks/WIBlueBk1948/reference/wi.wibluebk1948.i0011.pdf}}</ref> From 1957 to 1963 he served as state chairman of the Democratic Party.<ref name=dictionary /> Lucey was a Wisconsin campaign aide of [[John F. Kennedy]] in his presidential run in 1960.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/united-states-ambassador-mexico-nomination-patrick-j-lucey|title=United States Ambassador to Mexico - Nomination of Patrick J. Lucey|website=The American Presidency Project|access-date=July 7, 2023}}</ref>
In 1964, Lucey was elected [[Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin]] and served one term from 1965 to 1967. At this time the governor and lieutenant governor of Wisconsin were elected on separate tickets, and voters chose Lucey, a Democrat, as lieutenant governor while simultaneously electing Republican [[Warren P. Knowles]] as governor<ref name=bluebook>{{cite book |title=State of Wisconsin 2011-2012 Blue Book |year=2011 |publisher=Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau |location=Madison, Wis |isbn=978-0-9752820-1-4 |pages=708–709 }}</ref> (An amendment to the [[Wisconsin Constitution]] in 1967 combined elections for governor and lieutenant governor onto a single ticket).<ref>{{cite book |title=State of Wisconsin 2011-2012 Blue Book |year=2011 |publisher=Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau |location=Madison, Wis. |isbn=978-0-9752820-1-4 |pages=189,220 }}</ref>
Lucey ran as the Democratic candidate for governor of Wisconsin in 1966 but failed to unseat incumbent Warren Knowles. He was initially a supporter of Senator [[Robert F. Kennedy]] in his 1968 presidential bid, but began working for Senator [[Eugene McCarthy]]'s presidential campaign following Kennedy's assassination. He was the acting director of the McCarthy campaign at the [[1968 Democratic National Convention]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=McCarthy |first1=Abigail |title=Private Faces/Public Places |page=423}}</ref> In 1970, Lucey campaigned again for governor and was elected with 54 percent of the vote. Lucey was the first Wisconsin governor elected to a four-year term after a 1967 amendment to the state constitution extended terms from two years to four. He took office on January 4, 1971. Lucey ran successfully for a second term as governor in 1974, and served until his resignation on July 6, 1977, to accept a nomination as [[United States Ambassador to Mexico]].<ref name=bluebook />
==University of Wisconsin System merger== One of Lucey's executive initiatives was to revive an idea to merge the state's two university systems, the Wisconsin State University (WSU) system and the University of Wisconsin System, with campuses at Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay, and Parkside (Racine–Kenosha), as well as the [[University of Wisconsin–Extension]]. The idea was suggested in the 1940s and 1950s by Governors [[Oscar Rennebohm]] and [[Walter J. Kohler, Jr.]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wisconsin.edu/wisconsinideas/archive/2001fall/coverstory.htm |title=Wisconsin Ideas Fall 2001 - Reaching a Milestone |access-date=2009-09-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829110420/http://www.wisconsin.edu/wisconsinideas/archive/2001fall/coverstory.htm |archive-date=August 29, 2009 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>
In 1971, Lucey raised the issue again, saying a merger would contain the growing costs of two systems; give order to the increasing higher education demands of the state; control program duplication; and provide for a united voice and single UW budget. Madison faculty and administrators by and large opposed the merger, fearing it would diminish the great state university. Most WSU faculty and administrators favored the merger, believing it would add prestige to their institutions and level the playing field for state funding.
Merger legislation easily passed the Democratic-controlled Assembly. After much maneuvering and lobbying, it was approved by a one-vote margin in the Republican-controlled Senate. It took until 1974 for implementation legislation to be finalized. "I had to be pretty heavy-handed{{spaced ndash}}no merger, no budget", said Lucey in an interview following his term in office.
==Other gubernatorial accomplishments== Lucey also recommended additional funding for tourism, which spurred development throughout the state. Two examples were the expansion of the [[Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources]] park system and the Mt. Telemark Resort in [[Cable, Wisconsin]]. Since 1974, Cable and Mt. Telemark host the American [[Birkebeiner]] each year, the largest cross-country ski race in North America. He appointed a number of task forces to address minority concerns, including the Governor's Investigating Committee on Problems of Wisconsin's Spanish Speaking Communities, which identified the lack of programs to address the Mexican American and Puerto Ricans' lack of access to education, health, housing, and work across the state. At a time when there were over 30,000 Mexican Americans living in Wisconsin, with half living in Milwaukee, less than 10 Mexican Americans were enrolled at [[University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee|UW-Milwaukee]].
==1980 vice presidential campaign== [[File:Ambassador Patrick Lucey (cropped).png|thumb|Lucey in 1980]] The John Anderson–Patrick Lucey presidential ticket received 5,719,437 votes for 6.6 percent of the total vote in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1980|1980 presidential election]], despite a 25% showing in early polls by Anderson and a spirited televised debate between Anderson and [[Ronald Reagan]].
==2011 Wisconsin Supreme Court election== In 2011, Lucey, although a Democrat, acted as [[David Prosser Jr.|David Prosser]]'s campaign co-chairman. On March 31, 2011, he resigned from Prosser's campaign and endorsed [[JoAnne Kloppenburg]], attributing his decision to Prosser's "disturbing distemper and lack of civility", while praising Kloppenburg for "[adhering] throughout the campaign to even-handedness and non-partisanship and [exhibiting] both promising judicial temperament and good grace, even in the heat of a fierce campaign."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.channel3000.com/news/27392391/detail.html|title=Former Gov. Lucey Leaves Prosser's Campaign, Endorses Kloppenburg – Madison News Story – WISC Madison|publisher=Channel3000.com|access-date=April 4, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110404202017/http://www.channel3000.com/news/27392391/detail.html|archive-date=April 4, 2011|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
==Death== Lucey died on May 10, 2014, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at the age of 96.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/wisconsin-governor-lucey-dies-96-23674113|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140512000300/http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/wisconsin-governor-lucey-dies-96-23674113|url-status=dead|title=Former Wisconsin Governor Lucey Dies at 96|archive-date=May 12, 2014|work=ABC}}</ref>
==Legacy== In September 2009, Lucey was honored with a Wisconsin Historical Society marker in Ferryville.<ref>'Ferryville honors famous son former Gov. Lucey,' ''La Crosse Tribune,'' Richard Mial, September 29, 2009</ref> In October 2013, [[Wisconsin Highway 35]] between Ferryville and Prairie du Chien was renamed the "Governor Patrick Lucey Highway" in his honor.<ref>'"Every time I come, they put up a sign" Hwy. 35 renamed in honor of former Gov. Lucey,' ''La Crosse Tribune,'' October 3, 2013, Chris Hubbuch, pg. A1, A5</ref> Lucey also had a biography written about his time in politics.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://shop.wisconsinhistory.org/patrick-j-lucey|title=Patrick J. Lucey - A Lasting Legacy|website=Wisconsin Historical Society Store|access-date=July 7, 2023}}</ref>
==Electoral history==
=== Wisconsin Assembly (1948) ===
=== Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor (1964) ===
=== Wisconsin Governor (1966) ===
=== Wisconsin Governor (1970, 1974) === === U.S. President (1980) === {| class="wikitable" !Year !Election !Date ! colspan="5" |Elected ! colspan="5" |Defeated !Total !Plurality |- ! rowspan="9" valign="top" |[[1980 United States presidential election|1980]] | rowspan="9" valign="top" |General | rowspan="9" valign="top" |{{nowrap|Nov. 4}} | rowspan="9" valign="top" |{{nowrap|[[Ronald Reagan]]<br />[[George H. W. Bush]]}} | rowspan="9" valign="top" {{Party shading/Republican}} |[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] | rowspan="9" valign="top" align="right" |43,903,230 | rowspan="9" valign="top" align="right" |50.75% | rowspan="9" valign="top" align="right" |489 | valign="top" |{{nowrap|[[Jimmy Carter]]<br />[[Walter Mondale]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Democratic}} |[[Democratic Party (United States)|Dem.]] | valign="top" align="right" |35,481,115 | valign="top" align="right" |41.01% | valign="top" align="right" |49 | rowspan="9" valign="top" align="right" |86,509,678 | rowspan="9" valign="top" align="right" |8,422,115 |- | valign="top" |{{nowrap|[[John B. Anderson]]<br />'''Patrick Lucey'''}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Independent}} |[[Independent politician|Ind.]] | valign="top" align="right" |5,719,850 | valign="top" align="right" |6.61% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Ed Clark]]<br />[[David Koch]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Libertarian}} |[[Libertarian Party (United States)|Lib.]] | valign="top" align="right" |921,128 | valign="top" align="right" |1.06% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Barry Commoner]]<br />[[LaDonna Harris]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Citizens}} |[[Citizens Party (United States)|Cit.]] | valign="top" align="right" |233,052 | valign="top" align="right" |0.27% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Gus Hall]]<br />[[Angela Davis]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Communist}} |[[Communist Party USA|Com.]] | valign="top" align="right" |44,933 | valign="top" align="right" |0.05% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[John Rarick]]<br />Eileen Shearer}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/American Independent}} |[[American Independent Party|Amer.]] | valign="top" align="right" |40,906 | valign="top" align="right" |0.05% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Clifton DeBerry]]<br />[[Matilde Zimmermann]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Socialist Workers}} |[[Independent politician|Soc.]] | valign="top" align="right" |38,738 | valign="top" align="right" |0.04% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Ellen McCormack]]<br />Carroll Driscoll}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Right to Life}} |[[New York State Right to Life Party|Life.]] | valign="top" align="right" |32,320 | valign="top" align="right" |0.04% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |- |{{nowrap|[[Maureen Smith]]<br />[[Elizabeth Cervantes Barron]]}} | valign="top" {{Party shading/Peace and Freedom}} |[[Peace and Freedom Party|Pea.]] | valign="top" align="right" |18,116 | valign="top" align="right" |0.02% | valign="top" align="right" |0 |}
==References== {{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
==External links== * {{C-SPAN|1018536}}
{{s-start}} {{s-ppo}} {{s-bef|before=David Carley}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin]]|years=1964}} {{s-aft|after=[[Martin J. Schreiber]]}} |- {{s-bef|before=[[John W. Reynolds, Jr.|John Reynolds]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[Governor of Wisconsin]]|years=[[1966 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|1966]]}} {{s-aft|after=[[Bronson La Follette]]}} |- {{s-bef|before=[[Bronson La Follette]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[Governor of Wisconsin]]|years=[[1970 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|1970]], [[1974 Wisconsin gubernatorial election|1974]]}} {{s-aft|after=[[Martin J. Schreiber|Martin Schreiber]]}} |- {{s-bef|before=[[Reubin Askew]]}} {{s-ttl|title=Chair of the [[Democratic Governors Association]]|years=1977}} {{s-aft|after=[[Jim Hunt]]}} |- {{s-off}} {{s-bef|before=[[Jack B. Olson|Jack Olson]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin]]|years=1965–1967}} {{s-aft|after=[[Jack B. Olson|Jack Olson]]}} |- {{s-bef|before=[[Warren P. Knowles|Warren Knowles]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Governor of Wisconsin]]|years=1971–1977}} {{s-aft|after=[[Martin J. Schreiber|Martin Schreiber]]}} |- {{s-dip}} {{s-bef|before=[[Joseph J. Jova|Joseph Jova]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[United States Ambassador to Mexico]]|years=1977–1979}} {{s-aft|after=[[Julian Nava]]}} {{s-end}}
{{Governors of Wisconsin}} {{Lieutenant Governors of Wisconsin}} {{United States presidential election, 1980}} {{US Ambassadors to Mexico}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lucey, Patrick Joseph}} [[Category:1918 births]] [[Category:1980 United States vice-presidential candidates]] [[Category:2014 deaths]] [[Category:20th-century members of the Wisconsin Legislature]] [[Category:20th-century American diplomats]] [[Category:20th-century Wisconsin state court judges]] [[Category:Ambassadors of the United States to Mexico]] [[Category:Democratic Party governors of Wisconsin]] [[Category:Lieutenant governors of Wisconsin]] [[Category:Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly]] [[Category:Military personnel from Wisconsin]] [[Category:People from Crawford County, Wisconsin]] [[Category:Politicians from La Crosse, Wisconsin]] [[Category:School board members in Wisconsin]] [[Category:United States Army officers]] [[Category:United States Army personnel of World War II]] [[Category:University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) alumni]] [[Category:University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni]] [[Category:Democratic Party of Wisconsin chairs]] [[Category:Wisconsin independents]] [[Category:Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery (Milwaukee)]]