Interview of Bill Graves, July 15, 2011

In this 2011 interview, former Governor Bill Graves discusses his political career. The interview was conducted by Dr. Bob Beatty for the Kansas Institute of Politics. Graves describes his path from family-owned trucking business to his unexpected entry into public service, emphasizing how the combination of private-sector values and speech and debate training shaped his leadership style. He reflects on his tenure as Kansas Secretary of State and his subsequent election as a centrist Republican governor, detailing his efforts to navigate the growing ideological divide between moderates and conservatives within his party. Key decisions are highlighted, including development of his transportation initiative, the selection of a successor for U.S. Senator Bob Dole, and his approach to budgetary crises. Considered together, this interview, the 2022 interview of Graves by Mike Matson, the 2016 interview of Graves by Dr. Michael Smith of Emporia State University, and the other interview of Graves conducted by Beatty in 2004 form a picture of the changing nature of conservatism in Kansas politics and help define the meaning of Traditional Republican.

Interviews of former Kansas governors conducted by Dr. Bob Beatty of Washburn University during the early decades of the 21st Century for the Kansas Governors Recorded History and Documentary Project provide a view of the lives, political philosophies, and governing styles of governors who led Kansas from the late 20th to the early 21st Century. Beatty generously granted the Kansas Oral History Project (KOHP) permission to house the transcripts of these interviews conducted with former governors John Anderson, William Avery, John Carlin, Bill Graves, Mike Hayden, Mark Parkinson, and Kathleen Sebelius. These interviews are a significant addition to the Kansas Governors Collection, and the KOHP Board is grateful to Dr. Beatty for making the transcripts available for posting here.

William Preston (Bill) Graves was born and raised in Salina, Kansas. He was in the first graduating class in 1971 of Salina Central High School, after which he attended Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina so he could play football and baseball. Graves loved the small college environment and expected after graduation in 1976 to earn an MBA at the University of Kansas in preparation for going to work at Graves Truck Line. Unexpectedly, his father sold the company in 1980 and his life plans changed abruptly. Jack Brier's offer of a job in the Secretary of State's office started him on a new path which led to being elected the youngest governor in Kansas history. Following his tenure as governor, he returned to his original plan, serving as president of the American Trucking Associations.

January 9, 1953

Republican

Assistant Secretary of State, State of Kansas 1980-1986
Secretary of State, State of Kansas 1987-1995
Governor, State of Kansas 1995-2003