Preceded by Patricia Madrid Party Democratic Party Political party Democratic Succeeded by Hector Balderas | Website Official website Name Gary King | |
Governor Bill Richardson
Susana Martinez Full Name Gary Kenneth King Born September 29, 1954 (age 69)
Stanley, New Mexico, U.S. ( 1954-09-29 ) Residence Moriarty, New Mexico, U.S. Alma mater New Mexico State University
University of Colorado Boulder
University of New Mexico School of Law Role Former Attorney General of New Mexico Spouse Yolanda Jones King (m. 1987) Previous office Attorney General of New Mexico (2007–2015) Education University of New Mexico School of Law (1983) | ||
Parents Bruce King, Alice M. King | ||
Insight new mexico gary king
Gary Kenneth King (born September 29, 1954) is an American lawyer who served as the 30th Attorney General of New Mexico, serving from January 1, 2007 to January 1, 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he won his party's nomination and lost the general election to become Governor of New Mexico in 2014.
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King is the son of Bruce King, a three-time Governor of New Mexico, and Alice M. King, former First Lady of New Mexico. He attended New Mexico State University and obtained a bachelor's degree in Chemistry in 1976. He received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from University of Colorado, Boulder in 1980.
He then attended the University of New Mexico School of Law, where he received his J.D. In 1984, King formed the law firm of King and Stanley in Moriarty, New Mexico; in 1990, he assumed the position of Corporate General Counsel and Senior Environmental Scientist with Advanced Sciences, Inc., an environmental consulting firm. In 1998, he became the Policy Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in Washington, D.C.. Within a year, he became the Department’s Director of the Office of Worker and Community Transition. While at the DOE, he developed and implemented a program fostering cooperation between federal, state, local and Native American governments to enhance cleanup activities. He served for 12 years in the New Mexico House of Representatives.
Political career
In 2004, King ran for New Mexico's 2nd congressional district seat, losing to incumbent Republican Steve Pearce by 60%-to-40%. In 2006, King was elected Attorney General of New Mexico. He was re-elected in 2010, winning against Curry County District Attorney Matthew Chandler. On March 2, 2011, King on behalf of the Respondent, New Mexico, argued before the United States Supreme Court in Bullcoming v. New Mexico. On July 10, 2012, King officially announced that he was seeking the Democratic nomination for Governor of New Mexico.
2014 Gubernatorial race
On June 3, 2014, King won the New Mexico Democratic Primary for Governor, defeating the following candidates; Allen Webber, Lawrence Rael, Howie Morales and Linda Lopez, which all of them immediately endorsed him after losing the primary election. King unsuccessfully took on New Mexico Governor Susana Martínez in the General election. He told fellow Democrats at a fundraiser that Martinez "does not have a Latino heart".