Beverly White
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Beverly Jean White (née Larson; September 2, 1928 – May 24, 2021) was an American politician who served in the Utah House of Representatives for the 57th, 64th, or 21st districts from 1971 to 1991, as a member of the Democratic Party. The longest-serving consecutive female member of the Utah State Legislature as of her death, White held multiple positions in the Democratic Party at the local, state, and national levels and attended many state and national conventions. Born in Salt Lake City and raised in Tooele, Utah, White was educated at Tooele High School. She entered politics with her involvement in the Tooele County Democratic Ladies Club and later became active in the Tooele County Democratic Party. White served as vice-chair of the Tooele County Democratic Party, secretary of the Utah Democratic Party for sixteen years, and on the Rules Committee of the Democratic National Committee. She was a delegate to multiple state conventions of the Utah Democratic Party and was a delegate to every Democratic National Convention from 1964 to 2004, with the exception of 1976 when she was an alternate delegate. Governor Cal Rampton appointed White to the Utah Board of Pardons in 1965, her first public office. She was on the board until 1971, when she was appointed to fill a vacancy in the state house created by Representative F. Chileon Halladay's death. During her tenure in the state house, she served as assistant whip while in the majority and minority and was at times the only female chair of a committee. She served until she was defeated by Merrill Nelson in 1990. White also served on a hospital board, wrote a book about female legislators, and aided in the creation of a satellite campus for Utah State University.