| Karen Handel | |
|---|---|
| Handel (left) and Executive Director of the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission, Andy Foster (right) | |
| 26th Secretary of State of Georgia | |
| In office January 13, 2007 – January 8, 2010 |
|
| Governor | Sonny Perdue |
| Preceded by | Cathy Cox |
| Succeeded by | Brian P. Kemp |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 18, 1962 Washington, D.C., United States |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Steve Handel |
| Profession | Politician |
Karen C. Handel (born April 18, 1962) is an American politician in the state of Georgia who served as Secretary of State of Georgia from 2007 until her resignation in January 2010 when she ran for Governor of Georgia in the 2010 election as a Republican.[1] She announced in December 2009 that she would resign as Secretary of State in order to focus on the gubernatorial race full-time.[2] On August 10, 2010 she had a runoff with her opponent Nathan Deal in the Republican primary. She conceded on August 11.[3]
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Handel was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.[4] After graduating from high school[5] Handel began taking college courses at night but did not complete her degree and went to work for Hallmark Cards. Later, she would serve as Deputy Chief of Staff to Vice-President Dan Quayle's wife, Marilyn, where she worked to promote breast cancer awareness.
Handel worked at several major companies including global eye care company Ciba Vision and international accounting firm KPMG.[6] She served as President and CEO of the Greater Fulton County Chamber of Commerce, where she was directly responsible for working with state, local, national and international organizations to bring job growth to north Fulton County. Handel discovered that the Chamber was near fiscal insolvency after an employee was found to have embezzled nearly all of the chamber's funds and successfully managed the once-troubled organization through financial turbulence.
In 2002, Handel was named Deputy Chief of Staff by Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue, where she served as a policy advisor and supervised constituent services, the Governor's Mansion, and general administration services.
In 2003, Handel was elected Chairman of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners in a special election to replace Mike Kenn, receiving 58% of the popular vote. She ran in 2002 unsuccessfully. Handel is also credited with passing county ethics laws.
Handel was elected Secretary of State of Georgia on November 7, 2006 with over 54 percent of the vote,[7] making her the first elected Republican Secretary of State in Georgia's history and the second woman elected Secretary of State. The Secretary of State's Office has nearly 500 employees and oversees elections, corporations, securities and professional licensing boards, and also controls the state archives and the Capitol museum.[8]
As Secretary of State, Handel defended and implemented Georgia's photo ID law, which requires Georgia voters to show state-issued photo identification prior to casting a ballot in-person, and created the Agency's first Chief Investigative Officer to pursue elections and consumer fraud.
Handel launched the Transparency in Government Initiative [9] on the Secretary of State's website (www.sos.ga.gov), which displays the yearly budget, monthly spending totals, and Secretary Handel's political contributions and personal financial disclosures.
Handel also implemented verification of citizenship when registering to vote as required by the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). She defended that implementation in the Fall of 2008 in the face of lawsuits from the ACLU and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education fund (MALDEF). Within weeks of election day, two federal courts sided with Handel and the state of Georgia on the importance of verification and ordered the state to continue the processes through the election. In May 2009, the U.S. Department of Justice ordered Georgia to cease citizenship verification under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act which requires federal approval to any changes in election laws in a number of (primarily southern) states. Continued legal battles over the issue are considered likely.
Handel aimed to run for Governor of Georgia in the 2010 election.[10] She announced in December 2009 that she would resign as Secretary of State in order to focus on the gubernatorial race full-time.[11] Handel received 34% of the Republican primary vote against former Congressman Nathan Deal, who received 23%.[12] Since neither candidate received a majority, they faced off in the Republican Gubernatorial run-off on August 10, 2010.[13] Handel received the endorsement of former Republican 2008 Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.[14][15] Handel also received the endorsements of former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Arizona Governor Jan Brewer.
The Georgia Newspaper Partnership commissioned a poll which was published on August 7, 2010, which indicates that Handel leads Nathan Deal 47% to 42% in the hard fought primary runoff campaign.[16] Handel lost the runoff election to Deal 50% to 49%--with about 2,500 votes separating them. Handel rejected a recount and conceded to Deal the next day.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Cathy Cox |
Secretary of State of Georgia 2007-2010 |
Succeeded by Brian Kemp |