Thomas Felix Bolack (May 18, 1918 – May 20, 1998) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 20th governor of New Mexico for 32 days in 1962–1963.
Bolack was a self-educated oilman who learned geology from correspondence courses.[3] He was also a rancher and owner of the Albuquerque Dukes minor-league baseball team from 1956 to 1963.[4][5]
In 1960, Bolack was elected lieutenant governor[7] by a margin of 279 votes, becoming the first Republican lieutenant governor in New Mexico since 1928.[8] That Bolack, an "Anglo" (or New Mexican not of Spanish or Indian descent), was able to defeat a candidate with Spanish ancestry in statewide elections was seen as one of several signs of the decline of the influence of long-time United States Senator Dennis Chavez.[9] Democrats challenged the narrow victory, on the basis that some voters on Navajo reservations should have been required to vote outside of their reservations, but the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled in Bolack's favor.[10]
Governor
Governor Edwin L. Mechem was defeated in his bid for re-election and, when he resigned on November 30, 1962, Bolack became governor, serving the remainder of Mechem's term. Bolack, in his first act as governor, appointed Mechem to fill the vacancy in the United States Senate caused by the recent death of Dennis Chavez. Bolack served as governor until newly elected Governor Jack M. Campbell was sworn in on January 1, 1963.[11]
In 1976, Bolack co-chaired a bipartisan group that aimed to reform New Mexico's election legislation, after the state was included on a list of several states with unfair elections. In addition to lobbying for reform, the group offered $1,000 to anyone providing information leading to the arrest of an election-law violator.[12]
Personal life
Bolack's wife was Alice (née Schwerdtfeger) Bolack. They had three children.[1]
Death
In 1985, Bolack suffered a stroke and had to use a wheelchair. On May 20, 1998, Bolack died in Farmington, New Mexico. Bolack's body was cremated and his ashes were scattered over his Farmington ranch using 16 specially-made fireworks on Fourth of July, 1999.[1][2][13]
Legacy
Bolack's ranch is now the site of the Bolack Museum of Fish and Wildlife, which displays over 4,000 stuffed animals including many of rare species. Bolack, an accomplished big-game hunter and recipient of Safari Club International's Fourth Pinnacle of Achievement Award,[14] shot most of the animals in the collection himself.[15]
The Tom Bolack Urban Forest Park in Albuquerque is named in his honor.[16]
^State of New Mexico (July 2012). Kathryn A. Flynn (ed.). 2012 Centennial Blue Book(PDF). Diana J. Duran. Office of the New Mexico Secretary of State. pp. 218–219. Archived from the original(PDF) on September 24, 2015. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
^Frederick C. Irion, "The 1960 Election in New Mexico", Western Political Quarterly, March 1961
^"NEW MEXICO SEES A BLOW TO CHAVEZ; Defeat of Primary Entrants Backed by Senator Viewed as Sign of Voter Shift". New York Times. May 22, 1960.
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