CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- Kathy Karpan, a longtime politician who served as Wyoming's secretary of state from 1987 to 1995, died Oct. 24 at the age of 83.

A native of Rock Springs, Karpan attended the University of Wyoming and University of Oregon School of Law before entering politics as a staff assistant and press secretary for Rep. Teno Roncalio. From 1979 to 1986, she worked in the U.S. Department of Commerce and Wyoming Attorney General's office, setting the stage for her tenure as the Equality State's secretary of state.

Karpan, who remains the most recent Democrat to serve as secretary of state, defeated Republican challenger K.C. Thomson in the 1986 election and beat opponent Tom Zollinger when she earned reelection in 1990.

Among her accomplishments while in office, Karpan was instrumental in a reapportionment case that required state legislators to be elected from districts of equal population instead of by county.

After her time as Wyoming's secretary of state, she went to the federal government, where she served as director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

According to reports, she passed away after a months-long battle with cancer.

"Jennie and I were saddened to hear the news of the passing of Kathy Karpan, a long-time public servant," Gov. Mark Gordon wrote in a statement. "The Gordon family extends our heartfelt condolences to the Karpan family."