James Holshouser

James Holshouser was born on October 8, 1934 in Boone, North Carolina, United States to James E. "Peck" Holshouser and Virginia Dayvault Holshouser.[3][4] His father was an active member of the Republican Party who attended party meetings and served on the North Carolina State Board of Elections and as a United States Attorney under President Dwight Eisenhower. His mother was a registered member of the Democratic Party, though she eventually switched to independent status before becoming a Republican in 1972. People in Watauga County described the Holshouser family as "good livers", meaning they lived comfortably and had respectable social standing.[5]

At his high school Holshouser served as senior class president (he was elected unopposed), editor of the school newspaper, and was a member of the National Honor Society.[5] He attended Davidson College for undergraduate studies, majoring in history. He edited the school newspaper, wrote for the yearbook, and was a member of a fraternity, a literary society, and the international relations club. He strongly considered becoming a sports writer, and during his senior year he worked on the sports section of The Charlotte Observer. He later figured making a career out of sports would cause him to tire of them, so he decided to do what his father had done and become a lawyer.[6] He graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1960.[3] He married Patricia Hollingsworth the following year.[7]

Though politics was a "casual part of life" in his household while growing up, Holshouser paid little interest in pursuing a political career for much of his early life.[5]

In 1962[3][8] Holshouser was elected to the first of several terms representing Watauga County in the North Carolina House of Representatives, eventually becoming minority leader.[9] North Carolina had been virtually a one-party, Democratic-dominated state since disfranchisement of blacks in 1899; Holshouser came from one of the few areas of the state where the GOP even existed. During the 1960s and 1970s, however, a number of Southern whites began shifting their support to the Republicans.

He chaired the state Republican Party from 1966 through 1972.

Holshouser ran for the office of Governor of North Carolina in 1972. He decided to run in spite of his doctor's concerns about his health, as he was suffering from kidney disease.[7] In 1972, Holshouser defeated Jim Gardner for the Republican nomination for Governor, and then narrowly defeated Democrat Skipper Bowles in the general election with 51 percent of the vote, becoming North Carolina's first Republican governor elected since 1896. He was likely the beneficiary of coattails from Richard Nixon, who carried North Carolina and 48 other states in the Presidential election on the same ticket.[3] Electorally, he performed well among women and younger voters, while also appealing more to blacks than more conservative Republicans such as Gardner and U.S. Senator Jesse Helms.[10]

Holshouser was inaugurated on January 5, 1973.[11] At age 38, he was the state's youngest governor since the nineteenth century.[3] Upon taking office, he fired many incumbent state employees to accommodate the awarding of patronage to hundreds of Republicans who had been unable to work in the state administration under Democratic control.[10] Holshouser's first executive order established the Governor’s Efficiency Study Commission. After months of study the board recommended 700 cost-cutting measures, including five-year license plates, use of compact cars by state agencies, and centralized printing services. Holshouser later estimated that the changes saved the state government $80 million annually.[4]

Holshouser lacked executive experience upon assuming gubernatorial office, and had a tendency to react to others' proposals rather than create his own. With no veto power over the Democratic-dominated General Assembly, he also tried to avoid political conflict except over explicitly partisan issues.[12] In some instances the legislature attempted to weaken the powers of his office. Party association aside, Holshouser maintained a good relationship with the Assembly, as most of its members had known him when he was a state representative.[13] He enjoyed a good working relationship with Lieutenant Governor Jim Hunt, who held sway in the legislature, and during their first two years in office they minimized partisanship in dealing with each other.[14] Holshouser came into office when North Carolina had a $265 million budget surplus, which enabled him to fulfill some of his campaign promises.[12] He consulted Hunt on budget proposals and incorporated Hunt's plan to expand kindergarten in state education systems in his January 1973 budget.[14] The plan was passed into law, and was gradually phased in so that by 1977 all children in North Carolina would be enrolled in kindergarten.[15] His budget also expanded funding for state parks.[16] Holshouser and Hunt encouraged the state legislature to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution, but it failed approval.[15]

Holshouser was a moderate Republican, which caused some chagrin among many members of his own party. The governor supported Gerald Ford for president in 1976, while Helms (a former Democrat) supported Ronald Reagan. When Reagan won the North Carolina presidential preference primary of 1976, the Republican state convention refused to appoint Holshouser as a delegate to the Republican National Convention.[3] During his tenure the Executive Mansion underwent renovations, and for nine months he and his wife lived in a private residence while the work was completed.[7]

His accomplishments in office included consolidation of the University of North Carolina system under a Board of Governors, capital improvement funding for the community college system, statewide enrollment for children in kindergarten, and establishment of health clinics in rural areas not served by local physicians. He could not run for reelection in 1976. North Carolina governors were barred from immediate reelection at the time; while the state constitution had been amended to allow governors to run for reelection, this was not slated to take effect until 1976.

After leaving office, Holshouser returned to the practice of law,[3] splitting his time between firms in Boone and Southern Pines. In 1978 he moved to the latter town.[4] He was elected to the Board of Governors of the University of North Carolina, and later served as a member emeritus. He also served on the Boards of St. Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg and Davidson College.

Holshouser continued to suffer kidney problems that were treated with dialysis before he underwent kidney transplantation.[7]

Holshouser eventually became great friends with Democratic Lieutenant Governor Jim Hunt, who succeeded him in 1976. They served together on the North Carolina Advisory Board of DonorsChoose. Late in life, Holshouser campaigned alongside Hunt for state-funded judicial elections.[17]

Holshouser's wife died in 2006.[7] He died on the morning of June 17, 2013.[18]

• Holshouser Hall, a residence hall at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, is named in his honor.
• A stretch of US 321 between Boone and Blowing Rock is named for him.
• Professorships were endowed in his honor at both Appalachian State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.[19]
• Holshouser was honored with the North Carolina Award in 2006; it is the state's highest civilian honor.[20]

• James Holshouser entry at the National Governors Association
• Biographical Timeline
• Oral History Interviews with James E. Holshouser Jr. , , , from Oral Histories of the American South, Documenting the American South, University of North Carolina