Steve Merrill

Stephen Everett Merrill (June 21, 1946 – September 5, 2020) was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Manchester, New Hampshire. He served as the 77th governor of New Hampshire from 1993 to 1997.

Early life Merrill was born in Norwich, Connecticut but moved to New Hampshire at an early age. He graduated from Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, New Hampshire and the University of New Hampshire. He returned to private practice in 1989, starting a firm with Democrat John T. Broderick Jr., whom Merrill would later appoint to the New Hampshire Supreme Court. In 1993, Merrill signed an executive order celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Prior to Merrill's order, the holiday was known as Civil Rights Day due to conservatives' displeasure with King's opposition to the Vietnam War. Merrill signed a similar proclamation each year he was governor and in 1999 the state legislature officially changed the holiday's name.