Kim Guadagno
| Kim Guadagno | |
|---|---|
| Guadagno in Hoboken in 2010 | |
| 1st Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 19, 2010 |
|
| Governor | Chris Christie |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| 33rd Secretary of State of New Jersey | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 19, 2010 |
|
| Governor | Chris Christie |
| Preceded by | Nina Mitchell Wells |
| 75th Sheriff of Monmouth County | |
| In office January 3, 2008 – January 19, 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | Joseph W. Oxley |
| Succeeded by | Shaun Golden |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kimberly Ann McFadden April 13, 1959 Waterloo, Iowa, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Michael Guadagno |
| Children | Kevin Guadagno, Michael Guadagno and Anderson Guadagno |
| Residence | Monmouth Beach |
| Alma mater | Ursinus College, B.A. American University Washington College of Law, J.D. |
Kim Guadagno (pronounced gwah-DAH-nyoh; born April 13, 1959)[1] is the first Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey, having won the 2009 election as the running mate of Governor Chris Christie.[2] She is also concurrently the Secretary of State of New Jersey.
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Early life and education [edit]
Born as Kimberly Ann McFadden[3] in Waterloo, Iowa.[4][5] She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ursinus College in 1980, and a law degree in 1983 from the American University's Washington College of Law.
Political career [edit]
Kim Guadagno is a former Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and the District of New Jersey. She was also Assistant New Jersey Attorney General. Serving as deputy chief of the U.S. Attorney's office's corruption unit from 1994–98, Guadagno was responsible for the corruption prosecutions of former Essex County Executive Thomas D'Alessio (a Democrat) and of Somerset County Prosecutor Nicholas Bissell (a Republican).[6] In1994, in a case involving an executive of lottery contractor GTECH Corporation, the U.S. Attorney's Office was criticized by the judge overseeing the case for the disclosure of grand jury testimony in a sentencing report; the issue was never referred for further ethical or legal investigation.[7] The lottery executive went to jail.
She served as deputy director from 1998 to 2001 in the Division of Criminal Justice, where she supervised prosecutions of a $40 million financial fraud and of David L. Smith, creator of the "Melissa" computer worm.[6] She taught legal research and writing at Rutgers School of Law—Newark from 2003 until Nov. 2009 and in 2005 she was elected to Monmouth Beach's governing body as one of its three Walsh Act commissioners.[6]
Elected the 75th sheriff of Monmouth County in 2007, succeeding Joseph Oxley, she became the first woman to serve in the post. As sheriff, she was responsible for managing a staff of nearly 700 and a $65 million budget that included operation of a 1,328-bed maximum security prison. The department was one of 11 accepted nationwide into the federal program established under Immigration and Nationality Act Section 287(g) which allowed corrections officers to check the immigration status of prisoners before they were released.[6]
On July 20, 2009, Republican gubernatorial nominee Christopher J. "Chris" Christie announced that Guadagno was his choice as running mate, in the first New Jersey election to include voting for a lieutenant governor. Guadagno was said to have been selected over a number of other Republican women, including State Senator Diane Allen and Bergen County Clerk Kathleen Donovan.[8] Guadagno was not a well known political figure statewide in October 2009. According Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind Poll, Guadagno's name recognition in New Jersey was low with only 15% of voters reporting that they were aware of her. Out of the of New Jersey voters that knew of Guadagno, 4% reported having a "very favorable" or "somewhat favorable" opinion while 3% reported that they had a "very unfavorable" or "somewhat unfavorable" opinion of the prospective Lieutenant Governor .[9] Christie and Guadagno defeated Jon Corzine and Loretta Weinberg on November 3, 2009.[10]
Christie announced that as lieutenant governor, Guadagno would also serve as New Jersey's Secretary of State, along with overseeing economic development efforts and the streamlining of government regulations. She was sworn in on January 19, 2010.
Issues and positions [edit]
Abortion [edit]
Guadagno supports a pro-choice position on abortion, but would like to see fewer women choose the option. Christie expressed a pro-life stance on abortion during the primary campaign.[7]
Unsubstantiated Arts Council Allegations [edit]
In the Spring of 2011, Lt. Governor Guadagno questioned $300,000 in state arts funding during an official legislative hearing. Guadagno also serves as New Jersey's Secretary of State. In her testimony, but without specific details, she asked for greater power over State arts expenditures, despite the fact that as Secretary of State her office signs off on all major arts expenditures--including the $300,000. (Her testimony implied that her office had not approved the funding.) An official state investigation ended in December 2011 with no finding of wrongdoing. Two officials involved in the funding hired attorneys at their own expense.[11] [12]
Personal life [edit]
Guadagno moved to New Jersey in 1991 and has been a resident of Monmouth Beach since marrying husband Michael Guadagno in 1991. Her husband is a judge of the New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division. He was appointed to the bench in 2005 by then-Governor Richard Codey, and elevated to the Appellate Division by Chief Justice Stuart Rabner in 2012.[13] The Guadagnos have three children.[6]
Notes [edit]
- ^ Dinges, Tomas (2009-08-09). "Unprecedented role for Lt. Gov. candidate Kim Guadagno". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ^ Christie elected Governor
- ^ "Kimberly McFadden". Justia.com. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
- ^ "State of New Jersey". Office of the Lieutenant Governor. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
- ^ "BALLOT*PEDIA". Kim Guadagno. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
- ^ a b c d e Stile, Charles. "Christie announces lieutenant governor pick", The Record (Bergen County), July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009
- ^ a b Halbfinger, David M. "New Jersey G.O.P. Candidate Picks Woman as His No. 2", The New York Times, July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009.
- ^ Margolin, Josh; and Heininger, Claire. "Chris Christie introduces Monmouth Sheriff Kim Guadagno as GOP lieutenant gov. candidate", The Star-Ledger, July 20, 2009. Accessed July 21, 2009.
- ^ Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind Poll "PublicMind Name Recognition"
- ^ Silverleib, Alan. "CNN projects Republicans win governor races in Virginia, New Jersey", CNN, November 3, 2009. Accessed November 3, 2009.
- ^ 7 months later, N.J. probe into allegedly fraudulent public art contracts comes up empty, Kim McGlone, Newark Star Ledger, 29 Dec 2011
- ^ N.J. to investigate 3 contracts awarded by state arts council, Kim McGlone, Newark Star Ledger, 8 June 2011
- ^ "Judge Michael A. Guadagno Elevated to Appellate Division of Superior Court", July 3, 2012. Accessed August 8, 2012.
Sources [edit]
- AP: Biography of GOP Lt. Gov candidate Kim Guadagno
- AP: Christie picks Monmouth sheriff as running mate
External links [edit]
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kim Guadagno |
- Lt. Governor and Secretary of State Kim Guadagno official state site
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Position created |
Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey January 19, 2010–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Nina Mitchell Wells |
Secretary of State of New Jersey January 19, 2010–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Joseph W. Oxley |
Sheriff of Monmouth County, New Jersey 2008–2010 |
Succeeded by Shaun Golden |
| United States order of precedence | ||
| Preceded by Jim Cawley Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania |
United States order of precedence Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey |
Succeeded by Casey Cagle Lieutenant Governor of Georgia |
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- 1959 births
- Living people
- American female lawyers
- Women sheriffs
- Lieutenant Governors of New Jersey
- New Jersey lawyers
- New Jersey Republicans
- New Jersey sheriffs
- People from Monmouth Beach, New Jersey
- People from Waterloo, Iowa
- Rutgers School of Law–Newark faculty
- Secretaries of State of New Jersey
- Ursinus College alumni
- Washington College of Law alumni
- Women in New Jersey politics
- American female police officers