Kathleen Sebelius

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Kathleen_Sebelius
44th Governor of Kansas
In office January 2003 – Expires January 2011
Lieutenant(s)	John E. Moore
Preceded by	Bill Graves
Succeeded by	Incumbent
Born	May 15, 1948 Cincinnati, Ohio
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Gary Sebelius
Profession	Legislator
Religion	Roman Catholic

Kathleen Gilligan Sebelius (born May 15, 1948 in Cincinnati, Ohio) is an American Democratic politician who currently serves as the 44th Governor of Kansas.^[1] She is the second female governor from the state of Kansas. She is currently chairwoman of the Democratic Governors Association.

[edit] Early life and family

Sebelius was born and raised in a Catholic family in Cincinnati, Ohio. She attended the Summit Country Day School, a Roman Catholic secondary school, followed by Trinity Washington University, a Roman Catholic university in Washington, D.C., and later earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Kansas. She moved to Kansas in 1974 at the age of 26, where she served for eight years as a representative in the Kansas Legislature and eight years as Insurance Commissioner before being elected governor.

Sebelius is the daughter of former Ohio governor John J. Gilligan, and thus they became the first father/daughter governor pair in the United States after her election.^[2] Her husband Gary Sebelius is a federal magistrate judge and the son of former U.S. Representative Keith Sebelius. They have two sons. She also visits her childhood and current vacation home, located in Leland, Michigan, north of Traverse City, Michigan.

[edit] Early political career

She was first elected to the Kansas House of Representatives in 1986. In 1994, she "left the House to run for state insurance commissioner and stunned political forecasters by winning — the first time a Democrat had won in more than 100 years. She is credited with bringing the agency out from under the influence of the insurance industry. She refused to take campaign contributions from insurers and blocked the proposed merger of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, the state's largest health insurer, with an Indiana-based company. The decision by Sebelius marked the first time the corporation had been rebuffed in its acquisition attempts."^[3]

[edit] Governorship

Kathleen Sebelius with Condoleezza Rice and other Governors

[edit] 2002 election

Sebelius defeated Republican Tim Shallenburger in the 2002 election by a vote of 53%-45%.^[4] Her victory was partially the result of a bitter divide between conservatives and moderates within the Kansas Republican Party.^{[citation needed]} This divide is touched upon in Thomas Frank's bestseller What's the Matter with Kansas?.^{[citation needed]} Since winning election, Sebelius has successfully built upon her popularity and as of January 2006 was one of the most popular governors in the country.^[5]

[edit] Gun ownership laws

Sebelius vetoed, like her Republican predecessor Bill Graves, a concealed-carry law that would have allowed guns to be carried into the Statehouse, churches, and private establishments against the wishes of the property owner.^[6]

A hunter herself,^[3] Sebelius said she supports Kansans' right to own firearms, but does not believe a broad concealed-carry law would make them safer: "I don't believe allowing people to carry concealed handguns into sporting events, shopping malls, grocery stores, or the workplace would be good public policy. And to me the likelihood of exposing children to loaded handguns in their parents purses, pockets and automobiles is simply unacceptable."^[7]

On March 21, 2006, she vetoed Senate Bill 418, a similar concealed-carry bill. However, on March 25, Sebelius' veto was overturned after the Kansas House of Representatives voted 91-33 to override it. This followed the Kansas Senate's 30-10 override vote, which occurred the day after her veto.^[8]

[edit] Other views

After the Kansas economy reached its lowest point in over a decade early in her term, the economy has since experienced 22 months of continuous job growth. Kansas has thrice balanced the budget, and not raised taxes significantly during her term.^{[citation needed]}

Sebelius did not support the April 2005 amendment that would make gay marriage in Kansas unconstitutional. Sebelius said she supported the existing state law and viewed it as sufficient,^[9] and therefore opposed any such amendment.

Sebelius is pro-choice on abortion and a supporter of Roe v. Wade. Sebelius also does not support capital punishment; during her term as governor, the Kansas capital punishment laws were declared unconstitutional by the Kansas Supreme Court.

In 2006, Sebelius approved a controversial state education budget that largely benefits rural and impoverished areas of Kansas while providing little additional benefit to more established and affluent districts. Not one representative from Kansas' wealthiest county, Johnson County, voted in favor of the budget, as the budget diverts funding from affluent school districts, favoring rural and impoverished districts.

[edit] 2006 re-election

Main article: Kansas gubernatorial election, 2006

On May 26, 2006, Sebelius formally announced her candidacy for re-election. Four days later, Mark Parkinson, former Kansas state GOP Party Chairman switched his party affiliation to Democratic; the following day Sebelius announced that Parkinson will be her running mate. Parkinson had previously served in the state House from 1991-92 and the Senate from 1993-97. This was somewhat reminiscent of the fact that John Moore had also been a Republican, before switching just days prior to joining Sebelius as her running mate.^[10]

She was challenged by Republican Kansas State Senator Jim Barnett. A September 1 Rasmussen poll showed Sebelius with an 11% lead over Barnett. ^[11] Other polls gave Sebelius as much as a 20% lead. However, as of 2004, 50% of Kansas voters were registered Republicans, compared to 27% as registered Democrats.^[12] Sebelius, nevertheless, won a landslide re-election with 57.8% of the vote to Barnett's 40.5%. Due to Kansas's term limit law, her second term as Governor will be her last.

[edit] Speculation on political future

During the 2004 election, Sebelius was often named as a potential running mate for John Kerry.^[13][14] In May 2004, Kerry accepted an invitation from Sebelius to attend a Governor’s Proclamation Ceremony in Topeka to mark the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision.^[15] In the aftermath of Kerry's defeat in the 2004 presidential election, some pundits named Sebelius as a potential candidate for the Democratic nomination for President in 2008. Some of Sebelius' political leanings, including support for abortion rights and opposition to capital punishment, are unusual for a governor of Kansas, and many contend that her appeal would be broad among Midwesterners.^{[citation needed]}

She has been mentioned by political commentators as a possible Vice Presidential nominee in the 2008 election.^[16]

The Washington Post also reported that Sebelius would become chairwoman of the DGA succeeding Bill Richardson. [1]

It is possible that — building on her ability to win statewide election in Kansas, a heavily Republican state — in 2010 she may seek to become the first Democrat from Kansas to serve in the United States Senate since 1939. ^[17] Sam Brownback, current Senator from Kansas, a prospective candidate for the 2008 presidential election, currently occupies that seat, and has vowed not to serve beyond the two terms he has already been elected to. Sebelius has also been mentioned as a potential vice presidential nominee for the Democrats in 2008.

[edit] Recognition

In 2001, Sebelius was named as one of Governing Magazine's Public Officials of the Year while she was serving as Kansas Insurance Commissioner.^[18]

In November 2005, Time named Sebelius as one of the five best governors in America, praising her for eliminating a $1.1 billion debt she inherited, ferreting out waste in state government, and strongly supporting public education — all without raising taxes. Also praised was her bipartisan approach to governing.^[19]

In February 2006, the White House Project named Sebelius one of its "8 in '08", a group of eight female politicians who could possibly run and/or be elected president in 2008.^[20]

[edit] References

1. ^ Governor Kathleen Sebelius Biography. Retrieved on October 2006.
2. ^ Meet Kathleen. Retrieved on October 2006.
3. ^ ^{a b} "Political Women Go Hunting", National Wild Turkey Federation, October 27, 2004.
4. ^ State Races: Kansas.
5. ^ SurveyUSA (2006). Governor Approval Ratings 01/06 Sort by State. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
6. ^ Gunshopfinder.com (2005). KANSAS GOVERNOR VETOES CONCEALED CARRY BILL. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
7. ^ "Sebelius vetoes concealed carry bill", AP, April 16, 2004.
8. ^ Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline (2006). Kansas Concealed Weapon. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
9. ^ http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/04/06/kansans_vote_to_ban_same_sex_marriage Sebelius on gay marriage]. Retrieved June 5, 2006.
10. ^ Twitty, David. "Kan. gov. selects running mate for race", AP, May 31, 2006.
11. ^ http://www.rasmussenreports.com/2006/State%20Polls/August%202006/KansasGovernor.htm
12. ^ http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/KS/P/00/
13. ^ CNN (2004). John Kerry campaign: Democratic candidates for vice president. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
14. ^ CNN (2004). WHO WILL JOHN KERRY PICK AS HIS RUNNING MATE?. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
15. ^ Office of the Governor of Kansas (2004). Governor Sebelius to welcome Senator John Kerry to Kansas. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
16. ^ Zerger Nathan, Jesse. "Will Kansas Governor Be Dems VP Candidate in 2008?", BeyondChron, 24 April 2006.
17. ^ List of United States Senators from Kansas
18. ^ Gurwitt, Rob. "Kathleen Sebelius: Believer in Balance", Governing Magazine, November 2001.
19. ^ Time (2006). America's 5 Best Governors: Kathleen Sebelius |Kansas. Retrieved April 25, 2006.
20. ^ The White House Project (2006). Who are the 8 for '08? Retrieved June 1, 2006.

[edit] External links

• Kansas Office of the Governor - Kathleen Sebelius
• 2006 campaign website
• Trinity Washington University (2006). Profile: Kathleen Sebelius '70. Retrieved April 25, 2006.

Governors of Kansas

Robinson • Carney • Crawford • Green • Harvey • Osborn • Anthony • St. John • Glick • Martin • Humphrey • Lewelling • Morrill • Leedy • Stanley • Bailey • Hoch • Stubbs • Hodges • Capper • Allen • Davis • Paulen • Reed • Woodring • Landon • Huxman • Ratner • Schoeppel • Carlson • Hagaman • Arn • Hall • McCuish • G. Docking • Anderson • Avery • R. Docking • Bennett • Carlin • Hayden • Finney • Graves • Sebelius