Martin Hatcher
{{short description|American politician and college professor}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = E Martin Hatcher
| image =
| alt =
| state_senate = Colorado
| district = 33rd
| term_start = January 14, 1975
| term_end = January 5, 1983
| predecessor = Al C. Ruland
| successor = Regis Groff
| birth_name = E Martin Hatcher
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1927|09|19}}
| birth_place = Ada, Oklahoma
| death_date = {{death date and age|2023|12|27|1927|09|19|mf=yes}}
| death_place = Gunnison, Colorado
| citizenship =
| party = Democratic
| spouse = Maxine Hatcher (née Millikin)
| children = Three sons
| residence = Gunnison, Colorado
| education =
| alma_mater = University of Denver
| profession = Professor of speech and drama
| website =
}}
E Martin Hatcher (September{{nbsp}}19, 1927{{snd}}December{{nbsp}}27, 2023) was a college professor and Democratic state senator from Colorado, U.S. He served two terms in the state senate, from 1975 to 1983.{{cite web |url= https://historicalelectiondata.coloradosos.gov/eng/candidates/view/14198/ |title= Martin Hatcher (D) |author= |date=n.d. |website=Colorado Secretary of State |publisher= |access-date=May 21, 2024 |quote=}} Born in Ada, Oklahoma, he moved with his family to Denver as a child, then after finishing college he moved to Gunnison, Colorado and began teaching at Western State College (now Western Colorado University), where he taught for 44 years.{{cite news |author= |date=January 10, 2024 |title=E Martin "Marty" Hatcher |url=https://www.gunnisontimes.com/articles/e-martin-marty-hatcher/ |url-status=live |work=Gunnison Country Times |location= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240112095141/https://www.gunnisontimes.com/articles/e-martin-marty-hatcher/ |archive-date=January 12, 2024 |access-date=May 21, 2024}}
Elections
Hatcher first ran for the state senate in 1974. He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. In the general election, he initially faced long-term incumbent Republican Harry M. Locke, who had served in the state senate since 1951. However, Locke died in October 1974, a month after winning the Republican primary. A Republican vacancy committee appointed John B. Shawcroft to replace Locke, but the general election ballots had already been printed, forcing Shawcroft to wage a write-in campaign. Hatcher won handily. He was re-elected in 1978.{{cite news |author= |date=October 14, 1974 |title=Salida Senator Harry Locke dies |work=The Daily Sentinel |location=Grand Junction, Colorado |page=8}}
Senate leadership position
Hatcher served as the Senate Minority Caucus Chair from 1981 to 1982.{{cite web |url=http://www.leg.state.co.us/lcs/leghist.nsf/DocView.xsp?documentId=B1D106E2E26C7700872578E2005EA149&action=openDocument |title=E. Martin Hatcher |author= |date=n.d. |website=Legislator History Database — Colorado legislators past and present |publisher=Colorado General Assembly |access-date=May 21, 2024 |quote=}}
Personal life and death
Hatcher's official first name is simply the letter E, without a period. To friends and family, he was known as Marty. He married Maxine Millikin, who predeceased him, in 1948. He held a bachelor's, a master's, and a doctoral degree from the University of Denver. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army as a cryptographic technician in Fairbanks, Alaska and was honorably discharged in 1946.{{cite web |url=https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/2024a_sm002_signed.pdf |url-status=live |title=Senate memorial 24-002: Concerning memorializing former senator E Martin "Marty" Hatcher |author= |date=2024 |website=Colorado General Assembly |publisher= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240521153612/https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/2024a_sm002_signed.pdf |archive-date=May 21, 2024 |access-date=May 21, 2024 |quote=}} He died on December 27, 2023, in Gunnison.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://historicalelectiondata.coloradosos.gov/eng/candidates/view/14198/ Hatcher's campaign history from the Colorado Secretary of State]
- [http://www.leg.state.co.us/lcs/leghist.nsf/DocView.xsp?documentId=B1D106E2E26C7700872578E2005EA149&action=openDocument Legislative Branch page about Hatcher]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatcher, Martin}}
Category:Democratic Party Colorado state senators
Category:People from Gunnison, Colorado
Category:Western State Colorado University faculty
Category:University of Denver alumni
Category:20th-century members of the Colorado General Assembly