John Coyle White

John Coyle White
John Coyle White
6th Texas Agriculture Commissioner
	In office; January 1951 – 1977
Governor	Allan Shivers (1951–1957); Price Daniel (1957–1963); John B. Connally Jr. (1963–1969); Preston E. Smith (1969–1973); Charles Taylor Manatt
Personal details
Born	November 26, 1924; Newport, Texas, U.S.
Died	January 21, 1995 (aged 70); Washington, D.C.
Resting place	Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas
Spouse	Mary Jean Prince
Alma mater	Texas Technological College

John Coyle White (November 26, 1924 – January 21, 1995

U.S. President Jimmy Carter

.

Early years

White was born in

sharecropper. White graduated in 1946 from Texas Technological College in Lubbock

.

Texas agriculture commissioner

At the age of twenty-five, White was elected statewide as the Agriculture Commissioner, the youngest person ever elected to statewide office in Texas.[3] He was re-elected twelve times and served 26.5 years in the post. He worked to smooth the transition of Texas from an agricultural to a predominantly urban economy.^[3] White established marketing programs that served as models for other state governments. He was responsible for establishing a close working relationship with Mexican agricultural entities that had expanded markets for both countries.^[4]

Deputy Secretary of Agriculture

In 1977,

U.S. Department of Agriculture. He was responsible for the implementation of national agriculture policy and was the chief U.S. representative in negotiations with foreign governments, including the Soviet Union, on grain agreements. White served during a period of great unrest among the nation's farmers. His calm and reasoned arbitration with disaffected groups resulted in several successful changes in U.S. farm policy.^[3]

White resigned his post in 1978, when President Carter tapped him to lead the Democratic National Committee.

Chairman of the Democratic National Committee

He helped the Democratic Party retain its majority in the 1978 congressional elections. The

U.S. Senate in the 1980 elections, but the Democrats retained their majority in the United States House of Representatives under the leadership of Tip O'Neill. John White was DNC chairman at a time when Democrats controlled the White House

, the Senate, the House of Representatives, and a majority of governorships.

Death and burial

White died on January 20, 1995, in Washington, D.C. He is interred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas.

References

^ "White, John Coyle".
^ David Binder (January 21, 1995). "John C. White, 70, Chairman Of Democrats in Carter's Term". The New York Times. p. 12.
^ ^a ^b ^c Texas State Cemetery|
^ Ashbrook Center, Ashbrook University|

Appearances on C-SPAN

Political offices
Preceded by James E. McDonald	Texas Agriculture Commissioner 1951–1977	Succeeded by Reagan V. Brown
Government offices
Preceded by Missing	United States Deputy Secretary of Agriculture 1977 – 1978	Succeeded by James H. Williams
Party political offices
Preceded by Kenneth M. Curtis	Chairman of the Democratic National Committee 1978 – 1981	Succeeded by Charles T. Manatt

[1] "White, John Coyle".

[2] David Binder (January 21, 1995). "John C. White, 70, Chairman Of Democrats in Carter's Term". The New York Times. p. 12.

[Texas_State_Cemetery-3] Texas State Cemetery|

[4] Ashbrook Center, Ashbrook University|

[3]

[4]