Donald Kenneth Sundquist

When elected governor of Tennessee in 1995, Don Sundquist also became chairman of the UT Board of Trustees. He was born in Moline County, Illinois, in 1936 and received the bachelor’s degree from Augustana College in 1957. A prominent Memphis businessman, he was a delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1976 and 1980. He served as US Representative from the seventh district (West Tennessee and the Memphis suburbs) from 1983 to 1995 and as governor from 1995 to 2003. He secured passage of the Families First welfare reform package during his first year in office. His second term was largely devoted to the attempt to modernize Tennessee’s tax structure, but he was unsuccessful in initiating an income tax. In 2002 he donated his papers covering his congressional career and gubernatorial campaign to the UT Libraries’ Special Collections.  Sundquist died on August 27, 2023 at the age of 87.

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  • Title Donald Kenneth Sundquist
  • Author
  • Keywords Donald Kenneth Sundquist
  • Website Name Volopedia
  • Publisher University of Tennessee Libraries
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  • Access Date July 16, 2025
  • Original Published Date
  • Date of Last Update August 27, 2023