Jay Nixon

Infobox Governor


name = Jay Nixon
width = 150px
height = 150px
caption =
order2 = 40th
office2 = Attorney General of Missouri
governor2 = Mel Carnahan, Roger B. Wilson, Bob Holden, Matt Blunt
term_start2 = November 3 1992
predecessor2= William L. Webster
successor2 = Incumbent
party = Democratic
birth_date = birth date and age|1956|02|13
birth_place = De Soto, Missouri
death_date =
death_place =
nationality =
spouse = Georganne W. Nixon
religion = United Methodist
relations =
children = 2 (Jeremiah and Will Nixon)
alma_mater =University of Missouri
occupation =
profession = Attorney


website = [http://ago.missouri.gov/ Attorney General's Website] [http://www.nixonforgovernor.com/ Nixon's Campaign Website]
footnotes =

Jeremiah W. "Jay" Nixon (born February 13, 1956) is an American politician from Missouri and a member of the Democratic Party. He has served as Missouri Attorney General since 1993, and is the only person in Missouri history to have been elected to this position for four terms. He is currently the Democratic nominee for Governor of Missouri.

Education, early career, and personal life

Nixon is a native of De Soto, Missouri. He earned his bachelor's degree in political science and his Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri in 1978 and 1981, respectively. He is married to Georganne W. Nixon; they have two children, Jeremiah and Will. After earning his J.D., he became an attorney in private practice.

Political career

Nixon was elected to the Missouri Senate in 1986. Two years later, he made his first bid for statewide office, an unsuccessful effort to oust incumbent U.S. Senator John Danforth. Nixon was defeated by Danforth, winning 32% of the vote compared to Danforth's 68%. Nixon was first elected as Missouri's Attorney General on November 3, 1992, on a platform of fighting crime, cleaning up government corruption, and protecting consumers and the environment. Nixon followed William L. Webster as Attorney General. The 1992 race for Attorney General between Nixon and former State House Minority Leader David Steelman was remarkably nasty and memorable for biting personal attacks; however Nixon beat Steelman 51% to 45%, with an unusually high 4% of the votes going to the Libertarian candidate.

Nixon was re-elected as Attorney General by a wide margin in 1996, and in 1998 he again made an unsuccessful run for U.S. Senate, this time losing to incumbent Republican Kit Bond. In 2000 and 2004 Nixon was again re-elected as Attorney General, both times by similarly wide margins.

Accomplishments as Attorney General

One of the most popular programs Nixon has implemented is the state's No Call program. More than 3.5 million Missourians are a part of the No Call list, which reduces unwanted telemarketing calls. Nixon also has recovered more than $1.2 million from telemarketers who violated the No Call law.

Nixon's victory in the U.S. Supreme Court in "Nixon v. Shrink" reinstated Missouri's campaign contribution limits and cleared the way nationally for campaign finance reform. In two other cases of significance, Nixon's work in the Blue Cross and Blue Shield and the Health Midwest cases have resulted in the formation of the state's two largest health care foundations, which will use more than $1.5 billion to help provide health care services to underserved populations of the state. Litigation by Nixon against tobacco companies for illegally marketing cigarettes to young people resulted in the largest settlement in the history of the state.

As Attorney General, Nixon has created the Environmental Protection Division to enforce Missouri's environmental laws. Attorneys in this division take legal action to stop the pollution of the state's air, water and soil and to look after Missouri's agricultural interests. Successful litigation by the division has resulted in the cleanup of polluted sites and millions of dollars awarded to the state. Nixon also has led the fight to protect the state's interests in the management of the Missouri River as well as to preserve some of the state's most valuable natural resources, such as Church Mountain and the waterways of the White River basin.

Personal Achievements

Nixon's aggressive actions in the Attorney General's Office have earned him national recognition. [http://www.barristermagazine.com Barrister magazine] named him one of the 20 outstanding young lawyers in the nation, and the Missouri Jaycees selected him one of Ten Outstanding Young Missourians.

Prior to becoming Attorney General, he was recognized by the [http://www.confedmo.org Conservation Federation of Missouri] for his environmental work as a state senator.

Controversies

As Attorney General, Nixon has also been heavily involved in controversial decisions regarding school desegregation, capital punishment, and abortion. Nixon has overseen the state's involvement in the court settlements that ended mandatory urban busing in St. Louis and Kansas City's public schools. His role in the desegregation cases has caused friction with some African American leaders. Nixon is also a supporter of capital punishment, which has caused him some political difficulties with opponents of the death penalty. In addition, Missouri Republicans have criticized Nixon for his campaign soliciting campaign contributions from utility companies, including Ameren during an ongoing criminal investigation by his office of the company, which were immediately returned when Nixon was made aware of the matter. [http://www.stltoday.com/blogs/news-politicalfix/2007/04/dnr-still-gnawing-at-that-ameren-bone-and-hitting-nixon-with-it/]

2008 Governor campaign

On November 10, 2005, Nixon filed to launch a 2008 campaign for governor. [ [http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/C90EA35391DC265C862570B6001BC17A?OpenDocument] "St. Louis Today"] A November 2006 poll showed Nixon with a 13-point lead over incumbent Republican Governor Matt Blunt (52% to 39%) for the governor's race. [ [http://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/story.php?ID=21379] ] Though Blunt's job approval ratings improved from the low 30s in 2006 to the low 40s in May 2007. [ [http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReport.aspx?g=c50d9fb8-a517-477f-a9d7-88a3523a70e8] ] Nixon increased his lead in a July 2007 Survey USA poll to a 19-point lead (57% to 38%). [ [http://www.surveyusa.com/client/PollReportEmail.aspx?g=8384602e-7a93-4779-b82f-bdddb1cd370c] ] Blunt announced on January 22, 2008, that he would not seek a second term. As of March 25, 2008, the last day to file in order to appear on the August ballot, three Democratic and five Republican candidates had filed. [http://www.sos.mo.gov/candidates/DisplayCandidatesPlacement.asp?vOffice=1GOVNR&vElection=P108] "Missouri Secretary of State" ] On August 5, 2008, Nixon was elected as the Democratic nominee, and U.S. Representative Kenny Hulshof as the Republican nominee.

Electoral history

Election box candidate with party link
party = Democratic Party (US)
candidate = Jay Nixon
votes = 1,592,842
percentage = 60
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Republican Party (US)
candidate = Chris Byrd
votes = 1,000,503
percentage = 37.7
change =

Election box candidate with party link
party = Democratic Party (US)
candidate = Jay Nixon
votes = 1,378,296
percentage = 60.3
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Republican Party (US)
candidate = Sam Jones
votes = 855,814
percentage = 37.4
change =

Election box candidate with party link
party = Democratic Party (US)
candidate = Jay Nixon
votes = 690,208
percentage = 43.8
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Republican Party (US)
candidate = Christopher (Kit) Bond
votes = 830,625
percentage = 52.7
change =

Election box candidate with party link
party = Democratic Party (US)
candidate = Jay Nixon
votes = 1,243,091
percentage = 59.4
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Republican Party (US)
candidate = Mark J. Bredemeier
votes = 767,962
percentage = 36.7
change =

*1988 Race for US Senator
**John Danforth (R) (inc.), 68%
**Jay Nixon (D), 32%

External links

* [http://ago.mo.gov/ Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon] official state site
* [http://www.jaynixon.com Jay Nixon for Governor 2008] official campaign site
* [http://votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=BMO70401 Project Vote Smart - Jeremiah W. 'Jay' Nixon (MO)] profile
*"Follow the Money" - Jeremiah W (Jay) Nixon
** [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=105278 2008] Governor campaign contributions
** [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=89655 2006] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=67254 2004] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=3183 2002] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?c=37855 2000] Attorney General campaign contributions