Pierre S. du Pont, IV

Infobox Officeholder
honorific-prefix =
name = Pierre S. du Pont
honorific-suffix = IV


imagesize =
small

office = 68th Governor of Delaware
term_start = January 18 1977
term_end = January 15 1985
predecessor = Sherman W. Tribbitt
successor = Michael N. Castle
office2 = U.S. Representative from Delaware
term_start2 = January 3 1971
term_end2 = January 3 1977
predecessor2 = William V. Roth, Jr.
successor2 = Thomas B. Evans, Jr.
birth_date = birth date and age|1935|1|22
birth_place = Wilmington, Delaware
death_date =
death_place =
spouse = Elise Ravenel Wood
party = Republican
residence = Wilmington, Delaware
alma_mater = Princeton University
occupation =
profession = Lawyer
religion =

Pierre Samuel "Pete" du Pont, IV (born January 22 1935) is an American lawyer and politician from Delaware. He is a member of the Republican Party, who served three terms as U. S. Representative from Delaware and two terms as Governor of Delaware.

Early life and family

Du Pont was born January 22 1935 at Wilmington, Delaware, the son of Pierre S. III and Jane Holcomb du Pont, and great nephew of Pierre S. du Pont, the developer of Longwood Gardens. After an education at the Phillips Exeter Academy, Princeton University, and Harvard Law School, he served in the U.S. Naval Reserve (Seabees) from 1957 until 1960. He is married to Elise Ravenel Wood and has four children, Elise, Pierre S., V., Benjamin Franklin, and Eleuthère Irénée.

U.S. House of Representatives

From 1963 until 1970 du Pont was employed by E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. In 1968 he was elected to the 1969/70 session of the Delaware House of Representatives, and then in 1970 was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, defeating Democrat John D. Daniello, a New Castle County Councilman and labor leader. Having seriously considered a bid for the United States Senate seat won in 1972 by Democratic U.S. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr., he realized he faced a primary election against former U.S. Representative Harry G. Haskell, Jr., and bowed to the desire of Republican leaders, including U.S. President Richard M. Nixon, to have a reluctant incumbent U.S. Senator J. Caleb Boggs seek a third term. Du Pont won election to the U.S. House of Representatives three times, also defeating Democrats Norma Handloft in 1972 and University of Delaware professor James S. Soles in 1974. In Congress, du Pont supported an attempt to limit presidential authority through the War Powers Act of 1973, but was one of the last to remain loyal to U.S. President Richard M. Nixon during the impeachment process. In all, du Pont served from January 3 1971 until January 3 1977.

Governor of Delaware

Du Pont did not seek another term in the U.S. House of Representatives as he was elected Governor of Delaware in 1976, defeating incumbent Democratic Governor Sherman W. Tribbitt. He was elected to a second term as Governor in 1980, defeating Democratic State House leader, William J. Gordy, and served two terms from January 18 1977 until January 15 1985.

Du Pont's two terms as Governor were the major divide in the modern history of the state, resolving the financial and economic uncertainties of previous administrations, and establishing the model for governance followed ever since by his successors in both parties. Following a desperate initial confrontation with the Democratic Delaware General Assembly over the budget, both du Pont and the Delaware General Assembly realized the need for bipartisan cooperation, and gradually developed the consensus approach to decision making so characteristic of Delaware politics to this day. As a result of this cooperation, du Pont was able to reorganize the fiscal basis of state government by signing into law two income tax reduction measures and a constitutional amendment that restrained future tax increases and limited government spending. The Wilmington News Journal praised these policies, saying that "he revived [the] business climate and set the stage for [Delaware's] prosperity. Education and preventing youth unemployment were also important themes of his administration. In 1979, he founded the nonprofit "Jobs for Delaware Graduates," an employment counseling and job placement program for high school seniors not bound for college. This program was the model for other programs currently functioning in many states and foreign countries.

But perhaps the greatest accomplishment of du Pont's tenure was the establishment of the credit card industry in Delaware. Responding to the desire of a couple of New York banks to relocate their credit card business to a more convivial business location, du Pont immediately recognized the opportunity to broaden the economic base of the state, and used his considerable powers of persuasion to make a deal. With the cooperation of the leadership of both parties and many others in state and local government, and working against a deadline, the Financial Center Development Act was passed, effective June 1, 1981. Intended to attract two banks that would hire at least 1,000 employees, it actually brought over thirty banks to the state and created some 43,000 new finance related jobs. Down at the heels Wilmington, and the rest of New Castle County, were completely transformed. The irony was that it was a member of the du Pont family that led the state away from its previous dependence on the chemical industry in general and the Du Pont Company, in particular.