Rose Mofford (née Perica; June 10, 1922 – September 15, 2016) was an American civil servant and politician of the Democratic Party who served as the 18th governor of Arizona from 1988 to 1991.

Her parents, Frances (Oberstar) and John Perica,[3] had immigrated to the United States from Croatia, then part of Austria-Hungary.

[4] She graduated in 1939 as class valedictorian and, based upon her father's advice, turned down an opportunity to play professional basketball with the All American Red Heads.

[5] When Governor Raúl Castro announced his resignation to become Ambassador to Argentina, Secretary Bolin ascended to the governorship.

Arizona does not have a lieutenant governor; the secretary of state stands first in the line of succession to the governorship if retaining office by election.

Although Mofford was Secretary of State, she held that post by appointment, so she could not ascend to the governorship; instead, Attorney General Bruce Babbitt became governor.

[11] Mofford became known in the state capital as the friendly woman with a beehive hairdo, and her office gained a reputation as an efficient operation.

[8][14] While most observers complimented her on the job she performed, Mecham objected to Mofford replacing the one state department head that he had appointed.

Mofford was sworn in as Governor for the balance of Mecham's term,[16] despite the fact that Article V, Section 2, of the Arizona Constitution, then provided that all state office holders must be male persons.

In an election held on November 8, 1988, Arizona voters adopted Proposition 103, eliminating the gender-specific qualification for office.

[17] Mofford was thought to have had a rocky transition to the governorship at first,[18] as she faced a collapse of the real-estate market and a high deficit left over from the previous administration.

[19] Mofford also received this nickname due to her ability to ease racial division in Arizona, which some considered a problem under Mecham.

[20] State Senate Democratic leader Alfredo Gutierrez said of her actions, "What she did was reinvest the system with dignity and honor.

[1] The governor formed a task force to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic statewide, as a response to its rising national concern;[22] during this time, the HIV/AIDS crisis was an issue thought to be ignored by politicians throughout the country.

[11] Mofford received the Distinguished Public Servant and Dedicated Humanitarian Award from St. Jude's Research Hospital.

[4] She served as chair of the campaign committee of Attorney General Terry Goddard's unsuccessful 2010 election bid for Governor of Arizona.

The couple divorced after a decade, but remained friends until his death in 1983; Rose Mofford retained Lefty's surname.