Nels Smith
| Neks Jensen Smith | |
Wyoming House Speaker
| |
| In office 1977–1979 | |
Wyoming State Representative
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| In office 1963–1979 | |
| Born | January 29, 1939 Newcastle, Wyoming. |
|---|---|
| Died | September 1, 2023 (aged 84) Lingle, Wyoming Death cause: |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Jeanette Rae Keener Smith (also died September 1, 2023) |
| Relations | Nels Hansen Smith (grandfather) |
| Children | Douglas and Garrett Smith |
| Residence | Beulah, Wyoming |
| Alma mater | University of Wyoming |
| Occupation | Rancher |
Nels Jensen Smith (January 29, 1939 – September 1, 2023) was a Republican politician from his native state of Wyoming. He was elected as a state representative in 1962 at the age of twenty-three. He was the state House Speaker in his final legislative term from 1977 to 1979. He attended the University of Wyoming in Laramie, his state's only four-year university.[1] His grandfather, Nels Hansen Smith (1884-1976), a native of South Dakota, was the Republican 18th governor of Wyoming from 1939 to 1943. The senior Smith lost his bid for reelection in 1942 to the Democrat Lester C. Hunt.[2]
A rancher from Sundance in Crook County in northeastern Wyoming and resident of Beulah, Wyoming, Smith and his wife, the former Jeanette Rae Keener, were killed in a head-on crash on September 1, 2023. Their 2022 Chrysler minivan on U.S. Highway 85 north of Lingle crossed the center line and collided with a 2023 Toyota driven by 44-year-old Alicia Rodriguez of Torrington, the Wyoming Highway Patrol reports. All three died at the scene.[1]
Legacy
Wyoming State Senate President Ogden Driskill, a Republican from Devils Tower, is Smith’s cousin. Driskill sad that Smith "had a long and great career." Like his grandfather, Smith was a persistent opponent of tax increases and expanded government. Governor Smith instituted programs leading to the abolition of the state property tax, according to the National Governors Association. In 1974, Representative Nels Smith proposed a constitutional amendment to prohibit state income taxes in Wyoming. Voters passed the measure, which still holds today. He also sponsored the first strip mine reclamation law in the West[1]
Current Governor Mark Gordon, a Moderate Republican, said that Wyoming had lost "a remarkable leader and a giant of a man in Wyoming ranching, politics and public service. His deep, resonating voice was put to good use, as he influenced state policy for decades. Nels’ insight was enormously helpful to me in my time as treasurer and as governor." Smith's public service went far beyond elected office, Gordon noted. "In addition to his long legislative career, Nels served for nearly a decade on the Wyoming Public Service Commission, where he recognized the importance of a viable, reliable, electric, gas and communications system for Wyoming residents," Gordon said, adding. "Nels was resolute in his support for the agricultural community, reflected in his membership of the Wyoming Stockgrowers and serving with Jennie on the Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust Board."[1]
U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis, a Moderate Republican from Wyoming, served on a few different boards with Smith. “I am deeply saddened to hear of the tragic car crash which claimed the lives of former House Speaker Nels Smith, his wife Jeanette, as well as Alicia Rodriguez of Torrington," Lummis said in a statement to The Cowboy State Daily. "I served on several boards with Nels and enjoyed visiting him and Jeanette in their home. I always enjoyed their company. Nels served our state proudly in the Wyoming House of Representatives and was a passionate advocate for Crook County agriculture and our entire state. My prayers are with the loved ones of all those who lost their lives in this accident.”[1]
