Keith Harvey Miller (March 1, 1925 – March 2, 2019) was an American Republican

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

from

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

. Miller was the second secretary of state of Alaska under Walter Hickel. He became the third

governor of Alaska A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

after Hickel’s resignation to become U.S. Secretary of the Interior. Under his tenure, Alaska came into sudden wealth after an oil lease sale on the North Slope created a revenue of $900 million.

Early life

Keith Harvey Miller was born in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

on March 1, 1925, one of four sons of Hopkins Keith Miller (1901–1981) and Sarah Margaret (née Harvey) Miller (1903–1960). He grew up in the rural outskirts of Seattle before the family moved to the vicinity of Bothell, Washington in 1939. Miller attended and graduated from high school in Bothell. He briefly studied at the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho, United States. Established in 1889 and opened three years later, it was the state's sole university for 71 years, until 1963. The un ...

before joining the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

, serving during the last two years of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early career and move to Alaska

After leaving the military, Miller established a

holly ''Ilex'' () or holly is a genus of over 570 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. ''Ilex'' has the most species of any woody dioecious angiosperm genus. The species are evergreen o ...

farm in

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington. It had a population of 55,605 at the 2020 census, making it the state of Washington's 23rd-most populous city. Olympia is the county seat of Thurston County, and the central city ...

in 1946. During this time, he spent portions of several summers working in the

Territory of Alaska The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an Organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The ...

and also studied at the University of Washington, Seattle, graduating with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in 1952. Miller sold the holly farm in 1953, the same year he married Diana Mary Doyle in Seattle and established a

collection agency Debt collection or cash collection is the process of pursuing payments of money or other agreed-upon value owed to a creditor. The debtors may be individuals or businesses. An organization that specializes in debt collection is known as a coll ...

there. He sold the agency in 1957 after being hired by the

Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

, who stationed him in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the List of cities in Alaska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of ...

Early political career

Miller began his political career in 1962 with his election to the Alaska House of Representatives., where he served one term. He served as Secretary of State of Alaska (now the

Lieutenant Governor of Alaska The lieutenant governor of Alaska ( Iñupiaq: ''Alaskam Kavanaata Ikayuqtiksrautaa'') is the deputy elected official to the governor of the U.S. state of Alaska. Unlike most lieutenant governors in the U.S., the office also maintains the dut ...

) from 1966 until Hickel resigned to become

United States Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natura ...

under President Richard M. Nixon, on January 29, 1969. He was promptly elevated to the position of

Governor of Alaska A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

Governor of Alaska

Under Governor Miller, Alaska completed the sale of land leases in Prudhoe Bay, which brought a windfall of $900 million. The funds from the oil leases were seven times the state’s budget and seven years after he first proposed an investment fund for oil royalties, Governor

Jay Hammond Jay Sterner Hammond (July 21, 1922 – August 2, 2005) was an American politician of the Republican Party, who served as the fourth governor of Alaska from 1974 to 1982. Hammond was born in Troy, New York and served as a Marine Corps fighter pi ...

established the

Alaska Permanent Fund The Alaska Permanent Fund (APF) is a constitutionally established permanent fund managed by a state-owned corporation, the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation (APFC). It was established in Alaska in 1976 by Article 9, Section 15 of the Alaska Sta ...

. He lobbied extensively for the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. He pushed the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

to approve the pipeline over the objections of Federal Judge George Hart and the Alaska Legislature for funds to build a road to the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field. In 1970, seeking election to a full term, he saw his popularity diminish as his former running mate, Walter Hickel, delayed issuance of the permit to build the pipeline. He faced a primary election challenge from two-term Congressman Howard Wallace Pollock. He defeated Pollock, but faced William A. Egan, who was Alaska’s first governor, in the general election. Egan won the race, 52.4-46.1. Only after the

1973 oil crisis In October 1973, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that it was implementing a total oil embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, which began after Eg ...

did Congress pass the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act that Miller sought.

Later career

In 1972, Miller was elected to a four-year term in the

Alaska Senate The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or reje ...

. That term was cut short due to a challenge of the

redistricting Redistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each ten-year census. The U.S. Constitution in Art ...

plan drawn up by the Alaska Supreme Court in 1972, centered on the apportionment of Senate districts in Anchorage. The court drew up a new plan in 1974. Rather than run for reelection in the new, Democratic-leaning district, Miller made one more campaign for governor in the Republican primary. He faced Hickel and

, who became the party’s nominee. In 1977, Governor Hammond named Miller to a seat on the Alaska Transportation Commission to serve as its chair.

Death

Miller died from

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

while at a hospice in

Anchorage Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...

a day after his 94th birthday on March 2, 2019. His wife, Jean Cuffel Miller, preceded him in death.

References

External links

Keith Miller
at ''100 Years of Alaska's Legislature'' , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Keith Harvey 1925 births 2019 deaths Republican Party Alaska state senators Methodists from Alaska Deaths from pancreatic cancer in Alaska Republican Party governors of Alaska Lieutenant governors of Alaska Republican Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives Military personnel from Seattle Politicians from Seattle United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II University of Idaho alumni University of Washington alumni 20th-century members of the Alaska Legislature