Peter Barton Wilson was born on August 23, 1933, in Lake Forest, Illinois, a suburb north of Chicago. His parents were James Boone Wilson and Margaret (Callaghan) Wilson. His father sold college fraternity jewelry to work his … See more

Wilson won the Republican nomination for Governor of California to succeed two-term Republican governor George Deukmejian, who chose not to seek a third term in 1990. In the general election, he defeated Democratic former San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein, … See more

Despite a campaign promise to the people of California not to do so, Wilson also unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination for President in the 1996 election, … See more

Wilson served three terms as Mayor of San Diego, from 1971 to 1983, winning election by a 2:1 margin each time. During his three terms he … See more

In 1982, Wilson won the Republican primary in California to replace the retiring U.S. Senator S. I. Hayakawa. Wilson's Democratic opponent was the outgoing two-term Governor Jerry Brown. Wilson was known as a fiscal conservative who supported See more

Wilson supported deregulation of the energy industry in California during his administration due to heavy lobbying efforts by See more

After leaving office, Wilson spent two years as a managing director of Pacific Capital Group, a merchant bank based in Los Angeles. … See more