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From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues

Granholm, Jennifer Mulhern (b. 1959)

Jennifer Granholm was Michigan’s governor from January 2003 to January 2011. During her eight years in office, Granholm “pioneered clean energy innovation [and] economic development,” as well as “foster[ing] critical partnerships between industry, government and researchers…” As a young woman, she had wanted to be an actress. After living in Los Angeles for three years and finding little success in that arena, she enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley, and earned a BA in political science in 1984. She earned a JD at Harvard University Law School in 1987. A federal prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice in Detroit from 1994 to 1996, she had a 98 percent conviction rate. From 1996 to 1998, Granholm was general counsel for the Detroit and Wayne County Stadium Authority.

Granholm worked for Independent presidential candidate John Anderson in 1980 and was a field coordinator for Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis in 1988. By 1998, a Democrat, she successfully ran for Michigan attorney general. In 2002, she successfully ran for governor on the Democratic ticket. Granholm campaigned on curbing urban sprawl, reviving Michigan’s cities, enforcing environmental laws, and protecting the state’s lakes, waterways, and other natural areas. When she took office, the state faced $4 billion in deficits, which Granholm resolved. Despite the crisis in the auto industry and globalization of jobs, she attracted new jobs to the state by diversifying the state’s economy. She expanded health care coverage to include more families, and increased spending for public schools. At the same time, in order to balance the state’s budget, she cut 25 percent of state departments and reformed public employee benefits and pensions.

Photo Credit: Dave Hogg

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Because of term limits, Granholm was not a candidate in 2010. She hosts a political television program.

Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Granholm moved with her family to southern California when she was three years old.

See also: Congress, Women in; Governors, Women; Public Speaking

References: “Biographies: Michigan,” National Journal, November 9th, 2002, p. 3310; H.W. Wilson, Current Biography 2003 (2004); “Michigan’s Makeover,” E Magazine 15 no. 2 (March/April 2004): 20-22; “Governor Jennifer M. Granholm Biography,” http://www.michigan.gov/granholm/0,4587,7-168-57920-,00.html (accessed July 22, 2012); “Jennifer M. Granholm,” www.jennifergranholm.com (accessed March 29, 2019).

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
"Granholm, Jennifer Mulhern (b. 1959)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, edited by Suzanne O’Dea, Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0398.
APA 7th
Granholm, Jennifer Mulhern (b. 1959). From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, In S. O’Dea (Ed.), Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0398.
CMOS 17th
"Granholm, Jennifer Mulhern (b. 1959)." From Suffrage to the Senate America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues, Edited by Suzanne O’Dea. Salem Press, 2019. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=Suffrage3e_0398.