Democratic Party politician and three-term Governor of New Mexico. Before becoming Governor in 1971, he served five terms in the New Mexico House of Representatives.
After serving during World War II in the United States Army, he graduated from the University of New Mexico-Albuquerque.
In the aftermath of the bloody New Mexico State Penitentiary Riot of 1980, he was harshly criticized for his administration's political corruption and inappropriate toleration of violence.
He was married for over sixty years to Alice King. Less than a year after his wife's 2008 death, Bruce King died from heart failure.
His fourth gubernatorial re-election campaign (in 1994) ended with his defeat by Republican candidate Gary Johnson.
