Gretchen Whitmer
Gretchen Whitmer | |
|---|---|
| File:Gretchen Whitmer, Towsley Foundation Policymaker in Residence (2015-2016) Courtesy of Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan.jpg | |
| Prosecutor of Ingham County | |
| In office July 2, 2016 – December 31, 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Stuart Dunnings III |
| Succeeded by | Carol Siemon |
| Minority Leader of the Michigan Senate | |
| In office January 12, 2011 – January 1, 2015 | |
| Deputy | Steve Bieda |
| Preceded by | Mike Prusi |
| Succeeded by | Jim Ananich |
| Member of the Michigan Senate from the 23rd district | |
| In office March 21, 2006 – January 1, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Virg Bernero |
| Succeeded by | Curtis Hertel Jr. |
| Member of the Michigan House of Representatives | |
| In office January 1, 2001 – March 16, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Laura Baird |
| Succeeded by | Mark Meadows |
| Constituency | 70th district (2001–03) 69th district (2003–06) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Gretchen Esther Whitmer August 23, 1971 Lansing, Michigan, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Gary Shrewsbury (divorced) Marc Mallory (m. 2011) |
| Children | 2 (3 stepchildren) |
| Education | Michigan State University (BA, JD) |
_Courtesy_of_Gerald_R._Ford_School_of_Public_Policy,_University_of_Michigan.jpg){kind=link}
Gretchen Esther Whitmer (born August 23, 1971) is an American politician who was a member of the Michigan House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006 and of the Michigan Senate from 2006 to 2015.[1][2] On November 5, 2010, her Democratic colleagues chose Whitmer as Minority Leader. On January 3, 2017, Whitmer announced her candidacy for governor, making her among the first to announce.[3] She is the Democratic nominee for governor of Michigan in the 2018 election.[4] Whitmer won the Democratic nomination on August 7, 2018.
Early life and education
Whitmer was born in 1971 in Lansing, Michigan, as the eldest of three children to Richard and Sherry Whitmer, who were both lawyers.[5] Her father served as head of the state's Department of Commerce under Governor William Milliken and was the president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan between 1988 and 2006.[6] Whitmer's mother worked as an assistant attorney general under Attorney General Frank Kelley.[7] Her parents divorced when she was 10 years old, and she and her siblings lived with their mother in Grand Rapids. Her father traveled from his home in Detroit to visit the family at least once a week.[8] Raised primarily in nearby East Lansing, she graduated from Forest Hills Central High School, just outside Grand Rapids.[9] She received a BA in communications from Michigan State University in 1993 and a JD from Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University in 1998.
Political career
Whitmer was elected to the State Senate in March 2006 after serving as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives from 2000 to 2006. In the Senate she served on the following committees: Government Operations (ranking Democrat), Judiciary, Health Policy, Agriculture, Legislative Council and the Senate Fiscal Agency Board of Governors. As a state representative, Whitmer served for four years as the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee.
On November 5, 2010, her Democratic colleagues unanimously chose Whitmer to be the Senate Democratic Leader, making her the first woman to lead a party caucus in the Senate.[7]
It was announced on May 11, 2016, that the judges of Michigan's 30th Judicial Circuit Court had unanimously selected Whitmer to serve the remaining six months of the term of outgoing Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III.[10] Dunnings was arrested on March 14, 2016, and charged with 11 counts of involvement with a prostitute and four counts of willful neglect of duty.[11] In a letter dated March 29, 2016, he announced he would resign effective July 2.[12] Whitmer's term expired on December 31, 2016.
Whitmer was administered the oath of office as prosecutor by Ingham County Circuit Court Chief Judge Janelle Lawless in a ceremony on June 21, 2016, and said her top priorities in her six months would be to determine if any other officials in the prosecutor's office knew about Dunnings's alleged crimes and to change how the office handles domestic violence and sexual assault cases.[13]
On July 22, 2016, Whitmer issued an 11-page report on whether Dunnings's alleged criminal activity affected cases handled by the office. The report concluded that employees "were never asked to compromise a case or look the other way" and that she had "...full confidence that any problem that had existed in this office left with Mr. Dunnings."[14][15]
Statewide political aspirations
Whitmer has long been considered a candidate for statewide office. In October 2009 she filed paperwork to run for the position of Michigan Attorney General,[16] to succeed term-limited incumbent Republican Mike Cox, but she suspended her campaign in January 2010, citing family concerns, and was instead reelected to the State Senate in November 2010.[17]
In 2013, facing being term-limited from the Michigan Senate, Whitmer was considered a top contender for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican incumbent Governor Rick Snyder. In January 2013, Whitmer announced she would not run for governor.[18]
2018 Michigan gubernatorial election
On January 3, 2017, Whitmer announced she would run in the 2018 Michigan gubernatorial race.[19]
On August 7, 2018, Whitmer became the Democratic nominee for governor of Michigan.[20] She won all 83 counties in the state,[21] a first for a Democratic primary victor.[citation needed]
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer | 2,434 | 47.4 | N/A | |
| Democratic | Mary Lindemann | 2,152 | 41.9 | N/A | |
| Democratic | John Schlinker | 284 | 5.5 | N/A | |
| Democratic | Robert McCann | 263 | 5.1 | N/A | |
| Majority | 281 | 5.5 | N/A | ||
| − | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | '"`UNIQ−−templatestyles−00000032−QINU`"'±% | − | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer | 17,409 | 56.6 | −0.1 | |||
| Republican | Bill Hollister | 13,355 | 43.4 | +3.6 | |||
| Majority | 4,054 | 13.2 | −3.7 | ||||
| Turnout | 30,764 | +21.5 | |||||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer | 18,002 | 62.5 | +5.9 | |
| Republican | Larry Ward | 10,783 | 37.5 | −5.9 | |
| Majority | 7,219 | 25.0 | −10.8 | ||
| Turnout | 28,785 | +12.9 | |||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer (I) | 26,828 | 65.7 | +3.2 | |
| Republican | Angela Lindsay | 14,307 | 34.3 | −3.2 | |
| Majority | 12,521 | 31.4 | +6.4 | ||
| Turnout | 40,865 | +42.0 | |||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer (Incumbent) | 64,404 | 69.8 | +16.4 | |
| Republican | Frank Lambert | 27,931 | 30.2 | +16.4 | |
| Majority | 36,473 | 39.5 | +32.8 | ||
| Turnout | 92,335 | 100 | +11.6 | ||
| Democratic hold | Swing | +16.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gretchen Whitmer (Incumbent) | 49,974 | 64.0 | −5.8 | |
| Republican | Kyle Haubrich | 28,127 | 36.0 | +5.8 | |
| Majority | 21,847 | 28.0 | −11.6 | ||
| Turnout | 78,101 | 100 | −15.4 | ||
| Democratic hold | Swing | -5.8 | |||
Personal life
Whitmer has two children with her first husband, Gary Shrewsbury. They divorced, and in 2011 she married Marc Mallory, who has three children from a previous relationship.[26][27] Whitmer and Mallory live in East Lansing, Michigan with her two daughters, Sherry and Sydney, who attend East Lansing High School, and his three sons, Alex, Mason, and Winston.[28][29]
References
- ^ Michigan Legislative Service Bureau (2006). Michigan Manual 2005-2006. Lansing: Legislative Council, State of Michigan. p. 129. ISBN 1-878210-06-8. Retrieved June 29, 2007.
- ^ Michigan Senate Democrats (2007). "Michigan Senate Democrats: About Gretchen Whitmer". Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Whitmer, Gretchen (January 3, 2017). "I'm ready—are you?". Medium. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
- ^ Marans, Daniel (August 8, 2018). "Gretchen Whitmer Wins Democratic Nomination For Governor Of Michigan". Huffington Post. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
- ^ "Monday Profile: Gretchen Whitmer". LegalNews.com. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
- ^ "Blue Cross takes punches in governor's race". Crain's Detroit Business. July 8, 2018. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
- ^ a b "Stateline Profile Gretchen Whitmer" (PDF). csgmidwest.org/. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
- ^ "Gretchen Whitmer's perplexing problem in race for Michigan governor". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ^ Mathews, Reena (January 17, 2017). "FHC alumna Senator Gretchen Whitmer is running for Governor". The Central Trend. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
- ^ Justin A. Hicks (May 11, 2016). "Whitmer chosen for interim Ingham County prosecutor". Lansing State Journal.
- ^ Emily Lawler (March 14, 2016). "Ingham County Prosecutor allegedly engaged prostitutes 'hundreds of times'". MLive Media Group. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
- ^ Benjamin Raven (March 29, 2016). "Stuart Dunnings informs Ingham County he is resigning as prosecutor". Jackson Citizen Patriot. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
- ^ "Whitmer 'looking forward' to starting as prosecutor". Lansing State Journal. June 22, 2016. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|authors=ignored (help) - ^ Justin A. Hinkley (July 22, 2016). "Cases unaffected by Dunnings' alleged crimes, Whitmer says". Lansing State Journal. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
- ^ Whitmer, Gretchen (July 22, 2016). "Report on the Status of the Ingham County Prosecutor's Office" (PDF). Ingham County Prosecutor's Office. Retrieved August 5, 2016.
- ^ Scott Davis (October 11, 2009). "Whitmer files papers to run for attorney general". Lansing State Journal. Retrieved January 11, 2010.
- ^ Chris Christoff (January 20, 2010). "Sen. Whitmer to leave AG race". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved January 22, 2010.
- ^ Jonathan Oosting (January 30, 2013). "Michigan Democrats disappointed that Gretchen Whitmer will not run for governor, still optimistic for strong candidates in 2014". MLive.com. Retrieved May 28, 2016.
- ^ Whitmer, Gretchen (January 3, 2017). "I'm ready — are you?". Medium. Retrieved June 3, 2017.
- ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/07/us/politics/gretchen-whitmer-michigan-election-results.html/
- ^ https://miboecfr.nictusa.com/election/results/2018PRI_CENR.html/
- ^ "2000 Michigan Election Results". Michigan Department of State. September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
- ^ "2000 Michigan Election Results". Michigan Department of State. September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
- ^ "2002 Michigan Election Results". Michigan Department of State. September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
- ^ "2004 Michigan Election Results". Michigan Department of State. September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
- ^ "Whitmer rises to establishment choice in Democrats' gov race". Detroit News. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
- ^ "Meet Gretchen - Gretchen Whitmer for Governor". Gretchen Whitmer for Governor. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ^ "Monday Profile: Gretchen Whitmer". Oakland Legal News. April 11, 2016. Archived from the original on December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2016.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ VanderKolk, Kevin (January 4, 2017). "Skubick: Whitmer family joins in run for governor". WLNS. Retrieved August 10, 2018.