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Created page with "{{Infobox officeholder |name=Stephen Lee Gunn |office=Louisiana State Representative for<br> District 22 (Catahoula, Grant, La Salle,<br> and Rapides parishes)..."
{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Stephen Lee Gunn
|office=[[Louisiana]] State Representative for<br> District 22 (Catahoula, Grant, La Salle,<br> and Rapides parishes)
|term_start=1992
|term_end=1996
|preceded=A. Dale Smith
|succeeded=Thomas D. "Tommy" Wright
|office2=[[Mayor]] of Montgomery, Grant Parish, Louisiana
|term_start2=October 2002
|term_end2=October 2010
|preceded2=John Timothy "Tim" Coolman
|succeeded2=Vera "Susie" Waters
|term_start3=November 2018
|preceded3=Vera "Susie" Waters
|birth_date=May 12, 1946}
|spouse= Single
|party=[[Independent voter|Independent]]
|religion=[[United Methodist]]
|occupation= [[Business]]man
[[United States Air Force]] (1968-1972)
|alma_mater=Montgomery (Louisiana)<br> High School<br>
[[Northwestern State University]]<br>
'''Note''':<br>
*One of Gunn's predecessors as [[mayor]] of Montgomery was his great-aunt, [[Lula Wardlow]], the first ever woman mayor of a [[Louisiana]] community.
}}
'''Stephen Lee Gunn''', known as '''Steve Gunn''' (born May 12, 1946), is a securities investor and the [[mayor]] of [[rural]] Montgomery, [[Louisiana]], who formerly served from 1992 to 1996 as an [[Independent voter|Independent]] state representative for District 22 (Catahoula, Grant, and La Salle parishes plus one [[precinct]] in Rapides Parish).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2024|publisher=Louisiana House of Representatives|accessdate=May 12, 2020}}</ref> Gunn served as mayor of mayor from 2002 to 2010 and returned for a second stint as mayor in November 2018.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns (Grant Parish), November 6, 2018.</ref>
==Background==
Gunn's maternal great-aunt, [[Lula Wardlow]], was mayor of Montgomery from 1926 to 1930. A [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], she was the first woman ever to be elected mayor of any community in Louisiana. She was a [[Methodist]] minister and denominational leader.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-w/|title=Wardlow, Lula|publisher=''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'': Louisiana Historical Association|accessdate=May 12, 2020}}</ref>
Gunn was born to Murrell Harrison Gunn (1919–1978), a Grant Parish school principal and administrator, and the former Elizabeth Wardlow (1924–2010), an English teacher at Montgomery High School and the daughter of James Owen Wardlow (1895–1980) and the former Mabel Thompson (1897–1977).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thetowntalk/obituary.aspx?n=elizabeth-wardlow-gunn&pid=144216808|title=Obituary of Elizabeth Wardlow Gunn|publisher=''The Alexandria Town Talk''|accessdate=July 22, 2010}}</ref> Gunn graduated in 1964 from Montgomery High School and in 1968 from [[Northwestern State University]] in [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]]. From 1968 to 1972, he was a first lieutenant in the [[United States Air Force]]. He is single.<ref>"Louisiana: Gunn, Stephen L.," ''Who's Who in American Politics, 2003-2004,'' 19th ed., Vol. 1 (Alabama-Montana) (Marquis Who's Who: New Providence, [[New Jersey]], 2003), p. 780.</ref>
==Political life==
In 1991, Gunn was elected to the legislature by ninety-four votes. He campaigned on a limited budget from his own resources and knocked on the door of nearly every residence in the district. In the October 19 primary, he ran second to [[incumbent]] Democrat A. Dale Smith, but ahead of a second Democrat, Cliff Zell. Gunn received 6,087 primary votes (33 percent) to Smith's 8,538 (46 percent), and Zell's 21 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://electionresults.sos.louisiana.gov/graphical/|title=Louisiana primary election returns, October 19, 1991|publisher=electionresults.sos.louisiana.gov|accessdate=July 13, 2010}}</ref> In the general election, Gunn prevailed, 9,931 to Smith's 9,837. Gunn lost Grant Parish in the primary, but he beat Smith by some 800 votes in Smith's home parish in the general election to secure his narrow victory.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 16, 1991.</ref> He did not seek reelection in 1995.
Gunn was an Independent town council member prior to his legislative service. He led the balloting in the council election held on October 6, 1990. He served with three Democrats and a [[Republican Party|Republican]], Donna Stroud Guillory (born 1962).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 6, 1990.</ref> He resigned the seat to enter the legislature.
On October 5, 2002, Gunn was elected Montgomery mayor in the primary without opposition. He succeeded the Democrat Tim T. Coolman (born 1962), with whom he had served on the council in 1991.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 5, 2002.</ref> On November 2, 2004, Montgomery approved a one-cent town [[sales tax]], which Gunn said would allow his community to meet rising fuel and insurance costs. The tax won handily, 194-91.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 2, 2004.</ref> Gunn won a second term as mayor by a wide margin in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on September 30, 2006. He defeated the Democrat Leo Floyd Davis, 180-38 votes. The town council then consisted of two Independents, two Democrats, and one Republican, Joann B. Lary (born 1939).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, September 30, 2006.</ref> Since 2014. no Democrats serve on the town council; the current makeup is three Republicans and two Independents.
Mayor Gunn had sought construction of a bridge atop the Red River at Montgomery to link the town directly to Natchitoches to the west. A ferry once used to cross the river at Montgomery ceased operating in 1960. He not seek reelection as mayor in the primary held on October 2, 2010. The Democrat Vera "Susie" Waters, who received 168 votes (80 percent), was elected to succeed him. A second Democrat, Randy Cotten, polled 42 votes (20 percent).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 2, 2010.</ref>
Early in 2016, Gunn told the Louisiana radio broadcaster [[Moon Griffon]] that he opposed [[U.S. President]] [[Barack Obama]]'s [[executive order]] to enhance gun control and supported [[Donald Trump]] in the 2016 presidential election and another Republican, retired Air Force Colonel [[Rob Manes]]s for the [[United States Senate]] seat vacated by [[David Vitter]], whom Gunn had also backed for governor in 2015 in the unsuccessful race against the Democrat [[John Bel Edwards]]. Gunn was also critical of state Republican lawmakers, with whose ranks he had been loosely aligned while a legislator, for having supported Edwards' unsuccessful choice for [[Speaker]] though the Republican [[Taylor Barras]] of New Iberia was finally elected as Speaker.<ref>''[[Moon Griffon|The Moon Griffon Show]],'' January 5, 2016.</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunn, Stephen}}
[[Category:Louisiana People]]
[[Category:Business People]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Mayors]]
[[Category:Independents]]
[[Category:United Methodists]]
[[Category:United States Air Force]]
|name=Stephen Lee Gunn
|office=[[Louisiana]] State Representative for<br> District 22 (Catahoula, Grant, La Salle,<br> and Rapides parishes)
|term_start=1992
|term_end=1996
|preceded=A. Dale Smith
|succeeded=Thomas D. "Tommy" Wright
|office2=[[Mayor]] of Montgomery, Grant Parish, Louisiana
|term_start2=October 2002
|term_end2=October 2010
|preceded2=John Timothy "Tim" Coolman
|succeeded2=Vera "Susie" Waters
|term_start3=November 2018
|preceded3=Vera "Susie" Waters
|birth_date=May 12, 1946}
|spouse= Single
|party=[[Independent voter|Independent]]
|religion=[[United Methodist]]
|occupation= [[Business]]man
[[United States Air Force]] (1968-1972)
|alma_mater=Montgomery (Louisiana)<br> High School<br>
[[Northwestern State University]]<br>
'''Note''':<br>
*One of Gunn's predecessors as [[mayor]] of Montgomery was his great-aunt, [[Lula Wardlow]], the first ever woman mayor of a [[Louisiana]] community.
}}
'''Stephen Lee Gunn''', known as '''Steve Gunn''' (born May 12, 1946), is a securities investor and the [[mayor]] of [[rural]] Montgomery, [[Louisiana]], who formerly served from 1992 to 1996 as an [[Independent voter|Independent]] state representative for District 22 (Catahoula, Grant, and La Salle parishes plus one [[precinct]] in Rapides Parish).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_PDFdocs/HouseMembership_History_CURRENT.pdf|title=Membership in the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812-2024|publisher=Louisiana House of Representatives|accessdate=May 12, 2020}}</ref> Gunn served as mayor of mayor from 2002 to 2010 and returned for a second stint as mayor in November 2018.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns (Grant Parish), November 6, 2018.</ref>
==Background==
Gunn's maternal great-aunt, [[Lula Wardlow]], was mayor of Montgomery from 1926 to 1930. A [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], she was the first woman ever to be elected mayor of any community in Louisiana. She was a [[Methodist]] minister and denominational leader.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lahistory.org/resources/dictionary-louisiana-biography/dictionary-louisiana-biography-w/|title=Wardlow, Lula|publisher=''A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography'': Louisiana Historical Association|accessdate=May 12, 2020}}</ref>
Gunn was born to Murrell Harrison Gunn (1919–1978), a Grant Parish school principal and administrator, and the former Elizabeth Wardlow (1924–2010), an English teacher at Montgomery High School and the daughter of James Owen Wardlow (1895–1980) and the former Mabel Thompson (1897–1977).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/thetowntalk/obituary.aspx?n=elizabeth-wardlow-gunn&pid=144216808|title=Obituary of Elizabeth Wardlow Gunn|publisher=''The Alexandria Town Talk''|accessdate=July 22, 2010}}</ref> Gunn graduated in 1964 from Montgomery High School and in 1968 from [[Northwestern State University]] in [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]]. From 1968 to 1972, he was a first lieutenant in the [[United States Air Force]]. He is single.<ref>"Louisiana: Gunn, Stephen L.," ''Who's Who in American Politics, 2003-2004,'' 19th ed., Vol. 1 (Alabama-Montana) (Marquis Who's Who: New Providence, [[New Jersey]], 2003), p. 780.</ref>
==Political life==
In 1991, Gunn was elected to the legislature by ninety-four votes. He campaigned on a limited budget from his own resources and knocked on the door of nearly every residence in the district. In the October 19 primary, he ran second to [[incumbent]] Democrat A. Dale Smith, but ahead of a second Democrat, Cliff Zell. Gunn received 6,087 primary votes (33 percent) to Smith's 8,538 (46 percent), and Zell's 21 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://electionresults.sos.louisiana.gov/graphical/|title=Louisiana primary election returns, October 19, 1991|publisher=electionresults.sos.louisiana.gov|accessdate=July 13, 2010}}</ref> In the general election, Gunn prevailed, 9,931 to Smith's 9,837. Gunn lost Grant Parish in the primary, but he beat Smith by some 800 votes in Smith's home parish in the general election to secure his narrow victory.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 16, 1991.</ref> He did not seek reelection in 1995.
Gunn was an Independent town council member prior to his legislative service. He led the balloting in the council election held on October 6, 1990. He served with three Democrats and a [[Republican Party|Republican]], Donna Stroud Guillory (born 1962).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 6, 1990.</ref> He resigned the seat to enter the legislature.
On October 5, 2002, Gunn was elected Montgomery mayor in the primary without opposition. He succeeded the Democrat Tim T. Coolman (born 1962), with whom he had served on the council in 1991.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 5, 2002.</ref> On November 2, 2004, Montgomery approved a one-cent town [[sales tax]], which Gunn said would allow his community to meet rising fuel and insurance costs. The tax won handily, 194-91.<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, November 2, 2004.</ref> Gunn won a second term as mayor by a wide margin in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on September 30, 2006. He defeated the Democrat Leo Floyd Davis, 180-38 votes. The town council then consisted of two Independents, two Democrats, and one Republican, Joann B. Lary (born 1939).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, September 30, 2006.</ref> Since 2014. no Democrats serve on the town council; the current makeup is three Republicans and two Independents.
Mayor Gunn had sought construction of a bridge atop the Red River at Montgomery to link the town directly to Natchitoches to the west. A ferry once used to cross the river at Montgomery ceased operating in 1960. He not seek reelection as mayor in the primary held on October 2, 2010. The Democrat Vera "Susie" Waters, who received 168 votes (80 percent), was elected to succeed him. A second Democrat, Randy Cotten, polled 42 votes (20 percent).<ref>Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns, October 2, 2010.</ref>
Early in 2016, Gunn told the Louisiana radio broadcaster [[Moon Griffon]] that he opposed [[U.S. President]] [[Barack Obama]]'s [[executive order]] to enhance gun control and supported [[Donald Trump]] in the 2016 presidential election and another Republican, retired Air Force Colonel [[Rob Manes]]s for the [[United States Senate]] seat vacated by [[David Vitter]], whom Gunn had also backed for governor in 2015 in the unsuccessful race against the Democrat [[John Bel Edwards]]. Gunn was also critical of state Republican lawmakers, with whose ranks he had been loosely aligned while a legislator, for having supported Edwards' unsuccessful choice for [[Speaker]] though the Republican [[Taylor Barras]] of New Iberia was finally elected as Speaker.<ref>''[[Moon Griffon|The Moon Griffon Show]],'' January 5, 2016.</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunn, Stephen}}
[[Category:Louisiana People]]
[[Category:Business People]]
[[Category:Politicians]]
[[Category:Mayors]]
[[Category:Independents]]
[[Category:United Methodists]]
[[Category:United States Air Force]]