Gray Davis

Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American retired politician and attorney.

Gray Davis
37th Governor of California
In office January 4, 1999 – November 17, 2003
Lieutenant	Cruz Bustamante
Preceded by	Pete Wilson
Succeeded by	Arnold Schwarzenegger
44th Lieutenant Governor of California
In office January 2, 1995 – January 4, 1999
Governor	Pete Wilson
Preceded by	Leo T. McCarthy
Succeeded by	Cruz Bustamante
Controller of California
In office January 5, 1987 – January 2, 1995
Governor	George Deukmejian Pete Wilson
Preceded by	Kenneth Cory
Succeeded by	Kathleen Connell
Member of the California State Assembly from the 43rd district
In office 1982–1986
Preceded by	Howard Berman
Succeeded by	Terry Friedman
Chief of Staff to the Governor of California
In office 1975–1981
Governor	Jerry Brown
Preceded by	Edwin Meese
Succeeded by	B. T. Collins
Personal details
Born	Joseph Graham Davis Jr. (1942-12-26) December 26, 1942 (age 82) New York City, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Sharon Ryer (1980–present)
Education	Stanford University (BA) Columbia University (JD)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1967–1969
Rank	Captain
Battles/wars	Vietnam War
Awards	Bronze Star

Davis served as the 37th Governor of California from 1999 to 2003. He was a member of the Democratic Party, only months into his second term, in 2003 Davis was recalled and removed from office, the second state governor successfully recalled in U.S. history.^[1]

Before serving as governor, Davis was chief of staff to Governor Jerry Brown (1975–81), a California State Assemblyman (1983–87), California State Controller (1987–95) and the 44th Lieutenant Governor of California (1995–99).

Davis holds a BA in history from Stanford University and a J.D. from Columbia Law School. He was awarded a Bronze Star for his service as a Captain in the Vietnam War.