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Ray Mabus
60th Governor of Mississippi
In office January, 1988 – January, 1992
Lieutenant(s)	Brad Dye
Preceded by	Bill Allain
Succeeded by	Kirk Fordice
Born	October 11, 1947 (age 59)
Political party	Democratic
Religion	Protestant

Raymond Edwin "Ray" Mabus, Jr. (born October 11, 1948) served as Governor of the U.S. state of Mississippi from 1988 to 1992 as a Democrat.

Contents 1 Early Life 2 Public Service 3 Current Business 4 Awards, Honors, Community Service

Mabus is a fourth-generation Mississippian; he grew up in Ackerman, the only child of the owner of the local hardware store. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, and holds a master's degree from Johns Hopkins and a law degree, Magna Cum Laude, from Harvard Law School. He also served in the U.S. Navy aboard the cruiser USS Little Rock.

Mabus began his professional career working on agricultural issues in Congress. He then returned to Mississippi, joining the staff of Governor William Winter. Winter's youthful staff -- which included Mabus, Dick Molpus, John Henegan, and Andy Mullins -- earned the nickname "Boys of Spring" by a rival state legislator.

In 1983, Mabus was elected state auditor and served from 1984 to 1988, during which time he recovered millions in misspent or stolen public funds and participated in a large FBI sting operation. In 1987, he narrowly defeated Tupelo businessman Jack Reed in the gubernatorial election. The youthful Mabus was billed as "the face of The New South", much like his counterpart in Arkansas at the time, Bill Clinton. Mabus was featured in a New York Times Magazine story that covered his challenges and successes, "The Yuppies of Mississippi" (February 28, 1988).

During his time as governor, he passed B.E.S.T. (Better Education for Success Tomorrow), one of the most comprehensive education reform programs in America; gave teachers the largest pay raise in the nation; was named one of Fortune Magazine’s top ten education governors; and balanced every budget. Mississippi also had record growth in new jobs, investment, tourism and exports. Recently, he was chosen in a poll of Mississippians as the Best Governor of the 20th Century. But some critics point to the fact he failed in a bid to enact a state lottery and garnered significant opposition for raising the sales tax one percent to fund education.

Mabus narrowly won his 1991 nominating primary on the first ballot by less than 1% to two under-funded but popular challengers. A nonserious candidate named George "Wagon Wheel" Blair garnered 8% of the vote on the first ballot of the Democratic primary, which, coupled with challenger Wayne Dowdy's 41%, nearly forced Mabus into a primary runoff. Unable to close ranks within his own party, Mabus lost narrowly to Republican businessman Kirk Fordice in the general election.

Mabus was appointed by President Bill Clinton to be the United States ambassador to Saudi Arabia and served from 1994 to 1996. During his tenure, a crisis with Iraq was successfully deterred, a terrorist attack was weathered, and contracts worth more than $16 billion were signed between Saudi Arabian and American companies. Also, Saudi Arabia officially abandoned the boycott of United States businesses that trade with Israel, and more than $8 million of proposed expenditures for the American mission were cut.

Mabus became Chairman and CEO of Foamex International in 2006 to help lead it out of bankruptcy. Less than nine months after his appointment, Foamex emerged from Chapter 11, paid every qualified creditor 100 cents on the dollar, plus interest, and preserved equity.

He has been awarded the U.S. Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Award, the U.S. Army’s Distinguished Civilian Service Award, the Martin Luther King Social Responsibility Award from the King Center in Atlanta, the National Wildlife Federation Conservation Achievement Award, the King Abdul Aziz Award from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Mississippi Association of Educators’ Friend of Education Award.

He is active in many community activities, primarily focusing on education. Following Hurricane Katrina, he founded the Help and Hope Foundation, which works to meet the needs of children affected by the storm. He is also a member of the RAND Center for Mid-East Public Policy and the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the Distinguished Lecturer on the Middle East at the University of Mississippi.

As a photographer, his photographs have raised tens of thousands of dollars for various Mississippi charities.

He has appeared on many television programs as an expert on the Middle East, including “60 Minutes” and “Nightline.”

Preceded by William Allain

Governor of Mississippi 1988-1992

Succeeded by Kirk Fordice

Governors of Mississippi

Holmes • Poindexter • Leake • Brandon • Holmes • Brandon • Scott • Lynch • Runnels • Quitman • Lynch • McNutt • Tucker • Brown • Matthews • Quitman • Guion • J. Whitfield • Foote • Pettus • McRae • McWillie • Pettus • Clark • Sharkey • Humphreys • Ames • Alcorn • Powers • Ames • Stone • Lowry • Stone • McLaurin • Longino • Vardaman • Noel • Brewer • Bilbo • Russell • H. Whitfield • Murphree • Bilbo • Conner • White • Johnson • Murphree • Bailey • Wright • White • Coleman • Barnett • Johnson Jr. • Williams • Waller • Finch • Winter • Allain • Mabus • Fordice • Musgrove • Barbour