| Scott Sipprelle | |
|---|---|
| Republican candidate for U.S. House of Representatives |
|
| Opponent(s) | Rush Holt (D) Kenneth J. Cody (I) |
| Incumbent | Rush Holt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 15, 1963 Santa Barbara, California, USA |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Tracy Sipprelle |
| Children | Jessica; David; Steven |
| Residence | Princeton, New Jersey |
| Occupation | Venture Capitalist |
| Religion | Protestant |
| Website | http://www.supportscott2010.com/ |
Scott Mills Sipprelle (born February 15, 1963) is a venture capitalist and was the 2010 Republican candidate for Congress in New Jersey's 12th congressional district.[1][2] Sipprelle founded Westland Ventures, a Princeton-based investment firm, which helps emerging companies by providing growth capital.[3]
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Scott Sipprelle, the third of Dudley and Linda Sipprelle's four boys, was born in Santa Barbara, California where his father was a high school teacher. Later, his parents joined the US Foreign Service and Scott spent much of his childhood living abroad, primarily in Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East. Sipprelle’s parents spent three decades protecting the United States’ foreign policy interests abroad. Sipprelle is a lifelong baseball fan and an avid athlete. He enjoys all forms of outdoor activities, and especially enjoys running, swimming, and biking.[3]
Sipprelle graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Hamilton College in 1985 with a B.A. in Economics along with a minor in government. He was the recipient of the Clark Prize in Public Speaking.
In 2007 Sipprelle founded the investment firm, Westland Ventures. Westland Ventures provides growth capital for emerging companies. Westland Ventures has invested in many young companies, including BlogTalkRadio, Zhena's Gypsy Tea, Narragansett Brewing, and The Bank of Princeton. [4] Sipprelle has served as Chairman of the Advisory Board for The Bank of Princeton.[5]
Previous to his 2007 founding of Westland Ventures, Sipprelle was a senior executive in the financial services industry. From 1985 to 1998 Sipprelle worked for Morgan Stanley, where, at 32, he became a managing director and came to head the firm’s Equity Capital Markets Division. In this position Sipprelle was raising growth capital for U.S. corporations.
In 1998, Sipprelle left Morgan Stanley to found his first firm, Copper Arch Capital.[6] Sipprelle's firm gained notoriety for instigating a shareholder revolt against cronyism and mismanagement at Morgan Stanley that eventually toppled the CEO, Phil Purcell. After a decade of managing capital for endowments and foundations, Sipprelle closed his fund in November 2007, a few months before the global stock markets collapsed.
Sipprelle first became active in politics when, as a college student, he served as an intern for Senator Pete Wilson (R-CA). Sipprelle has been active in the Republican Association of Princeton and the Mercer County Capital Republican Club.[7] He currently serves as a Republican Committeeman for the 8th District in Princeton Borough.[8] In 2009, Sipprelle and his wife hosted a Lincoln Day Dinner for then-gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie.[3]
On the night of January 13, 2010, Sipprelle announced his intention of running for the seat. Sipprelle promised to focus on “common-sense solutions”[9] and to take back Washington from the career politicians. This was Sipprelle’s first run for political office, and in a statement he said, “I’m not running for Congress simply to be competitive or put up a good fight.”[9] In a vow to be an independent voice on Capitol Hill Sipprelle said, “Frankly, any Congressman — of either party — who votes with his party boss 98 or 99 percent of the time is just a cog in the partisan machine that is tearing this country apart. He is not exercising wisdom, principle or good judgment, or putting his country first. You deserve better.”[9]
Sipprelle was criticized later in January for his contribution to the congressional campaigns of Blue Dog Democrats Allen Boyd of Florida, Charlie Melancon of Louisiana, Heath Shuler of North Carolina, Baron Hill of Indiana, and Stephanie Herseth Sandlin of South Dakota.[10][11]
On the night of June 8, Primary Election Day, Sipprelle won the Republican Primary over challenger David Corsi by a margin of 54-46.[12]
The Sipprelle for Congress campaign website introduced Sipprelle’s “Blueprint for Renewal” which reads:
What I Believe: America is the greatest economic success story the world has ever seen. Our history proves, indisputably, that the most effective way to provide for the needs of our people is by embracing the principles of individual liberty, personal responsibility, and free markets. We need to reclaim the great American ideal of entrepreneurship and innovation and remove the chokehold of big government that is imperiling the vitality of our private sector. Only a prosperous society can be a compassionate one.[3]
On November 2, 2010, buoyed by overwhelming support in the City of Trenton, six-term incumbent Rush Holt defeated Scott Sipprelle 53%-46%, with independent Kenneth J. Cody receiving 1%. The narrow margin of victory was notable given Holt's previous two Congressional races in 2008 and 2006 had resulted in landslide winning margins of 28% and 32% respectively. Holt's victory was marred by controversy after he made a claim, later disproved, that Sipprelle had influenced a local revaluation committee in Princeton to lower his property tax assessment. [13]
Sipprelle married his college sweetheart Tracy. They are the parents of three children Jessica, David, and Stephen.[1] Sipprelle and his family currently live in Princeton, New Jersey.[14]
In September 2009 Sipprelle self-published his first novel, The Golden Dog, a mystery set on Wall Street.[15]
Sipprelle has been a leader in the Princeton Little League organization and has been President of the Princeton-Cranbury Babe Ruth League.[3] Sipprelle is also a trustee of the Historical Society of Princeton.[16] He has served on a citizen’s committee which examined property revaluation in the surrounding area.[1] Sipprelle frequently hosts fundraisers in his historic home, which was once owned by President Grover Cleveland.
Sipprelle is the founder of the Sipprelle Charitable Corporation, where he and his wife Tracy have remained steadfast supporters of local philanthropic endeavors—especially those focused on education and self-reliance programs with regards to combating poverty. The Sipprelle Foundation provided primary funding for the founding of Isles Community Enterprises, an organization centered on financial literacy and micro-lending in Trenton.[3]