Betty Cooper Hearnes

Betty Sue Hearnes (née Cooper; born July 24, 1927) is a Democratic American politician from Missouri.[1]

Betty Cooper Hearnes
Member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 160th district
In office 1979–1989
First Lady of Missouri
In role January 11, 1965 – January 8, 1973
Governor	Warren Hearnes
Preceded by	Geraldine Dalton
Succeeded by	Carolyn Reid
Personal details
Born	Betty Sue Cooper (1927-07-24) July 24, 1927 Brinkley, Arkansas, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Warren Hearnes (1948–2009)
Education	Southeast Missouri State University Central College, Arkansas Baylor University University of Missouri, Columbia (BS)

She married Warren E. Hearnes, a recent West Point graduate, on July 2, 1947, while he was on leave from the United States Army, and was his partner throughout his career, including his two terms as Governor of Missouri and the federal investigations of his conduct by the Nixon White House, until his death in August 2009.[2]

She was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives from Charleston in 1979, in a special election. She was re-elected in 1980, 1982, 1984, and 1986.[3]

In 1988 she was the Democratic nominee for governor and lost to John Ashcroft.[4] Ashcroft received 64 percent of the vote in the general election—the largest landslide for Missouri governor since the Civil War.[5] She lost bids to return to the state house in 1990, the Missouri State Senate in 1992 and the state house in 1998.[6]

In 2005, both Warren and Betty Hearnes were awarded the Edwin P. Hubble Medal of Initiative during the Charleston Dogwood-Azalea Festival. The medal was presented by a delegation of citizens from Marshfield, Missouri. The medal is the city of Marshfield's highest honor and is named for a native son.[7]