Pete Cenarrusa

Pete Thomas Cenarrusa (December 16, 1917 – September 29, 2013)^[1] was an American politician from Idaho. He served continuously for over half a century in elective office, first as a member of the Idaho Legislature and then as Secretary of State.^[2][3] He was a member of the Republican Party.

Pete T. Cenarrusa
Cenarrusa in July 2010
25th Secretary of State of Idaho
In office May 1, 1967 – January 6, 2003
Governor	Don Samuelson Cecil Andrus John Evans Phil Batt Dirk Kempthorne
Preceded by	Edson H. Deal
Succeeded by	Ben Ysursa
Member of the Idaho House of Representatives from Blaine County
In office 1950–1966
Personal details
Born	Pete Thomas Cenarrusa (1917-12-16)December 16, 1917 Carey, Idaho, U.S.
Died	September 29, 2013(2013-09-29) (aged 95) Boise, Idaho, U.S.
Resting place	Bellevue Cemetery, Bellevue, Idaho
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Freda Coates Cenarrusa (1928– ) (m. 1947)
Children	1 son
Alma mater	University of Idaho (BS)
Profession	Education, agriculture state government
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	U.S. Marine Corps
Years of service	1942–1945, 1945–1963 (reserve)
Rank	Major
Unit	Aviation
Battles/wars	World War II, Cold War

Early life and education

Cenarrusa was born in Carey, Idaho on December 16, 1917. The son of Basque immigrants^[4] from Bizkaia, he was a native speaker of the Basque language.^[5] Cenarrusa graduated from the territorial school in Bellevue, and attended the University of Idaho in Moscow.

In college, he was a member of the Vandals' boxing team and the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.^[6] He graduated with a bachelor's degree in agriculture in 1940 and coached and taught math and science in Carey, Cambridge, and Glenns Ferry. During World War II, Cenarrusa was an aviator in the Marine Corps.^[7]

Political career

Cenarrusa was elected to the Idaho House of Representatives from Blaine County in 1950. He served in that capacity for 16 years, including six as speaker of the house.^[8]

In 1967, Cenarrusa was appointed Secretary of State by Governor Don Samuelson to fill a vacancy caused by the death of Edson H. Deal,^[9] and took office on May 1.^[10]

Cenarussa was elected to a full term in 1970. He was reelected seven times (1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, and 1998). Cenarrusa did not run for reelection in 2002, instead supporting his longtime chief deputy, Ben Ysursa. Upon leaving office Cenarrusa was the longest-serving secretary of state in the United States.

Cenarrusa is also the longest-serving elected public official in Idaho history, having held elective office for a total of 52 years.^[11]

Basque advocacy

Cenarrusa has been a longtime proponent of increased autonomy in the Basque Country, particularly in Spain.^[12][13] In the 1970s he worked with the Democratic U.S. Senator from Idaho, Frank Church, in an effort to curtail foreign aid to the Franco regime. Cenarrusa has also appealed for clemency for Basque political prisoners in Spain.^[11]

In 2003, Pete and Freda Cenarrusa organized the Cenarrusa Foundation for Basque Culture (originally the Cenarrusa Center for Basque Studies), which promotes the culture and history of the Basques by providing resources for performances, presentations and programs and to organizations throughout Idaho and Oregon.^[14]

Cenarussa was instrumental in the founding of the Basque Studies Program at Boise State University in 2006.^[15]

Death

After a three-year battle with cancer, Cenarrusa died in Boise at age 95.^[1] His funeral was at St. John's Cathedral in Boise and he was buried in Blaine County, at the Bellevue Cemetery in Bellevue.

Legacy

A state office building near the state capitol was named for him in 1998. Built in the late-1970s, it is on the site (43.617°N 116.196°W / 43.617; -116.196) of the old St. Alphonsus Hospital, which was vacated in 1972 and demolished a few years later. It is opposite the state supreme court building on State Street.