May 25, 1974

The forty-fourth governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee, married Janet McCain, whom he had dated during his final semester at Hope High School in his native Hope (Hempstead County). Huckabee was the only Republican governor elected to two four-year terms, but he was not eligible to run again in 2006 because of term limits. Late in 2005, Time magazine listed Huckabee among the five most effective governors in the nation, and Huckabee authored five books while governor, including Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork (2005) and From Hope to Higher Ground (2007). Huckabee announced his intention to run for president of the United States in January 2007, but he bowed out of the race in March after U.S. Senator John McCain scored enough delegates to win the Republican nomination.