George Washington Nelson[1] was an American politician from Arizona. He served three consecutive terms in the Arizona State Senate during the 8th through 10th Arizona State Legislatures holding the seat from Navajo County, and again in the 12th Arizona State Legislature.

G. W. Nelson
Member of the Arizona Senate
from the Navajo County district
In office
January 1927 – December 1932
Preceded byRobert L. Moore
Succeeded byFrank M. Siegmund
In office
January 1935 – December 1936
Preceded byFrank M. Siegmund
Succeeded byRobert L. Moore
Personal details
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
ProfessionPolitician

Biography

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He was a veteran of World War I, and after the war, Nelson served as a lieutenant in the artillery reserve corps.[2] In 1926 he ran and won the single Arizona State Senate seat from Navajo County.[3] In 1928 he ran for re-election, and was opposed in the Democrat primary by Robert L. Moore, a former state senator. No Republican ran for the seat, so Nelson was unopposed in the general election.[4][5] 1930 saw him run again for the Senate, and was unopposed in both the primary and general elections.[6]

In 1932, Nelson decided to run for the Arizona House of Representatives, but was defeated in general election by incumbent Republican Charles J. McQuillan.[7] In 1934, he attempted to return to the State Senate, and was in a three-way race in the Democrat primary, which included incumbent Frank M. Siegmund, who had replaced Nelson in the prior legislature. Nelson was the winner of the primary, and then defeated the Socialist Party candidate by a 20-1 margin in the general election.[8][9] He decided not to run in 1936, clearing the way for Robert L. Moore to return to the State Senate.[10] He attempted one more run for the State Senate, in 1940, but lost in the Democrat primary to Lloyd Henning, 1,790 to 1,098.[11]

References

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  1. ^ "George Washington Nelson". Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  2. ^ "Resolution Asks Equal Retirement For Army Officers". The Arizona Republican. November 4, 1927. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Navajo County". The Arizona Republican. November 8, 1926. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Many Contests In Sight In Navajo County As 57 Candidates File For Offices On Leading Party Tickets". The Arizona Republican. August 17, 1928. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "New Legislature Given By Counties". Arizona Daily Star. November 9, 1928. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Lower House Increased By Nine Solons". The Arizona Republican. November 2, 1930. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Republicans Capture Only Three Seats In Arizona Legislature". Arizona Republic. November 10, 1932. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Legislature To See Big Change". Arizona Daily Star. September 14, 1934. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Navajo County All Democratic". Arizona Republic. November 8, 1934. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Arizona Solons Leaving Places". Arizona Daily Star. August 23, 1936. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Police Chief Wins In Race". Arizona Republic. September 12, 1940. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.