Fred B. Balzar

Frederick Bennett Balzar (June 15, 1880 – March 21, 1934) was an American politician and lawyer. He was the 15th governor of Nevada. He was a member of the Republican Party.

Biography Balzar was born in Virginia City, Nevada. He attended school in Nevada, and graduated from San Francisco Polytechnic High School. Balzar worked at a variety of occupations, including stagecoach driving, ranching, railroading, mining, and insurance. Balzar (right) with the mayor of Las Vegas, J. Fred Hesse (left), at a construction site in 1930. A Republican, he served in the Nevada Assembly from 1905 to 1906, and the Nevada Senate from 1909 to 1916. He was sheriff and county assessor of Mineral County from 1917 to 1926, and chairman of the Nevada Republican Party from 1924 to 1925.

Balzar won the race for governor in 1926, defeating incumbent James G. Scrugham. He was re-elected in 1930.

In 1931, Balzar signed into law Assembly Bill 98, which allowed for wide-open gambling in Nevada.

After a lengthy illness Balzar died in the governor's mansion in Carson City on March 21, 1934. He shared a close friendship with comedian Will Rogers, who eulogized him as "a real two-fisted governor."