Sigfrid Benson "Sig" Unander (August 3, 1913 – February 1, 1978) was an American politician who served two terms as

Treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

of the state of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

from 1952 to 1959. A Republican, Unander was his party's nominee for

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

and unsuccessfully sought the party nomination for

Governor of Oregon The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...

Early life

Unander was born in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

on August 3, 1913, to Sigfrid M. and Caroline Benson Unander, a daughter of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

businessman and philanthropist

Simon Benson Simon Benson (born Simen Bergersen Klæve, September 9, 1851 – August 5, 1942) was a Norwegian-born American businessman and philanthropist who was active in the city of Portland, Oregon. Early life Simon Benson was born Simen Bergersen Kl� ...

. He studied political science at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts, and later an MBA from the

Stanford Graduate School of Business The Stanford Graduate School of Business is the Postgraduate education, graduate business school of Stanford University, a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California. For several years it has been the most selective ...

. Unander served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during

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 ...

, attaining the rank of lieutenant colonel and earning two medals from the United States and four from other Allied Nations while serving in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, and the Southwest Pacific.

Political career

Prior to serving in World War II, Unander was executive assistant to Republican Oregon Governor Charles A. Sprague. Upon his return from the war, he remained active in Republican politics, serving as treasurer of the party's State Central Committee and vice chairman of the Oregon Republican Club. He was a member of the Young Republicans and a precinct committeeman. In 1948, he sought the Republican nomination for the position of

Oregon State Treasurer The Oregon state treasurer is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, elected by statewide vote to serve a four-year term. As chief financial officer for the state, the office holder head ...

, but lost the primary election to State Senator Howard Belton by just 1,348 votes. In 1952, Unander again ran for the office, and this time secured his party's nominee and defeated

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Francis Lambert in the general election to become Oregon's 18th State Treasurer. In 1956, he defeated Wiley Smith to win re-election by a wide margin. Unander's convincing re-election made him the early favorite for the Republican nomination in the upcoming 1958 Oregon gubernatorial election to face Democratic incumbent Robert D. Holmes, who had narrowly won a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

two years earlier. But with many Republicans concerned that Unander was too conservative to get elected, the more moderate

Oregon Secretary of State The secretary of state of Oregon, an elected constitutional officer within the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon, is first in the line of succession to the List of Governors of Oregon, governor. The duties of the offi ...

Mark Hatfield Mark Odom Hatfield (July 12, 1922 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and educator from the state of Oregon. A Factions in the Republican Party (United States)#Moderates, moderate Republican Party (United States), Republican, he se ...

entered the race, earning the nomination and eventually the governorship. In 1959, Unander resigned as Treasurer to accept an appointment to the United States Federal Maritime Board where he served as vice chairman. Unander returned to Oregon to run in the 1962 United States Senate election. He defeated Congressman

Edwin Durno Edwin Russell Durno Jr. (January 26, 1899 – November 20, 1976) was a physician, politician, an infantry sergeant who was awarded a Purple Heart, and a basketball player recognized in the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. He was a Republican member ...

to become the Republican nominee, but lost in the general election to three-term Democratic Senator

Wayne Morse Wayne Lyman Morse (October 20, 1900 – July 22, 1974) was an American attorney and United States Senator from Oregon. Morse is well known for opposing the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party’s leadership and for his opposition t ...

Personal life

Unander and his wife Vivian had two children. He died in Portland on February 1, 1978, of a heart attack.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unander, Sig State treasurers of Oregon 1913 births 1978 deaths Politicians from Portland, Oregon Stanford University alumni Oregon Republicans 20th-century Oregon politicians