Chris Coons
Christopher A. Coons | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Senator-elect from Delaware | |
| Assuming office November 2010[1] | |
| Succeeding | Ted Kaufman |
| County Executive of New Castle County | |
| Assumed office January 4, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas P. Gordon |
| President of the New Castle County Council | |
| In office January 2, 2001 – January 4, 2005 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 9, 1963 Greenwich, Connecticut |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Annie Lingenfelter |
| Residence | Wilmington, Delaware |
| Alma mater | Amherst College (B.A.) Yale Law School (J.D.) Yale Divinity School (M.A.R.)[2] |
| Website | Chris Coons for U.S. Senate |
Christopher Andrew "Chris" Coons (born September 9, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, Delaware, currently U.S. Senator-elect from Delaware, and is the County Executive of New Castle County. On February 3, 2010, he announced his candidacy for the Senate seat vacated by Vice President Joe Biden.[3][4] He won his bid for the Senate seat and will serve out four of the six years of Biden's vacated term, two years already being filled by Kaufman.[1]
Early life and family
Coons grew up in Hockessin, Delaware, married Annie Lingenfelter, and has three children. They live in Wilmington, Delaware. He graduated from the Tower Hill School and then Amherst College in 1985 with a B.A. in Chemistry and Political Science, earning a Truman Scholarship. During his junior year of college, Coons studied abroad at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. He earned graduate degrees from both the law and divinity schools at Yale University.[2]
Professional career
After college, Coons worked in Washington, D.C., for the Investor Responsibility Research Center, where he wrote a book on South Africa and the U.S. divestment movement. He then worked as a volunteer for the South African Council of Churches and as a relief worker in Kenya, before returning to the U.S. to work for the Coalition for the Homeless in New York. In 1992, he earned his J.D. degree from Yale Law School, and a master's degree in Ethics from Yale Divinity School.[5]
Coons clerked for Judge Jane Richards Roth on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and then worked for the National "I Have a Dream" Foundation in New York.[6] After returning to Delaware in 1996, Coons began his eight year career as in-house counsel for W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc., Newark, Delaware-based makers of Gore-Tex fabrics and other high-tech materials. There he was responsible for the ethics training program, federal government relations, e-commerce legal work, and for general commercial contracting.[7]
He has also worked with several non-profits, including the Council for the Homeless, the education-oriented “I Have a Dream” Foundation of Delaware, and the South African Council of Churches, and serves on several boards including First State Innovation, the Bear/Glasgow Boys & Girls Club, and the Delaware College of Art & Design.
Awards and honors
In 1999, he was awarded the Governor's Outstanding Volunteer Award for his work with the "I Have a Dream" Foundation, the Governor's Mentoring Council, and the United Way of Delaware.[7]
Coons has been named an honorary commander of the 166th Air Wing of the Delaware Air National Guard, and is an honorary life member of the Minquadale Fire Company.
Political career
Coons first became involved in politics working on behalf of Republican politicians, first for Ronald Reagan's presidential campaign in 1980 and then for Bill Roth's Senate campaign in 1982.[8] During college, he switched from being a Republican to a Democrat and in 1988, Coons worked as a volunteer for the Senate campaign of Democratic Delaware Lt. Gov. Shien Biau Woo.[6] He was a delegate from Wilmington to the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. His first elected office was President of the New Castle County Council, elected in 2000 and serving four years before being elected County Executive in 2004. He was the endorsed candidate of the New Castle County Democratic Party in 2008, and was re-nominated by the party on September 9, 2008.
Coons was re-elected on November 4, 2008, defeating Republican candidate and former New Castle County Executive Thomas P. Gordon.
2010 U.S. Senate campaign
Coons ran in the 2010 special election against the Republican candidate Christine O'Donnell for the U.S. Senate seat then held by Ted Kaufman, who was appointed after Joe Biden resigned.[9]
In the first post-primary polls, Rasmussen Reports showed Coons with a double-digit lead over O'Donnell, describing this as a "remarkable turnaround" as the race had been leaning Republican until O'Donnell upset Mike Castle in the Republican primary election.[10] At approximately 8:00pm [EST], multiple news sources announced that Coons had defeated his Republican opponent Christine O'Donnell.
Public offices
The County Executive of New Castle County takes office the first Tuesday of January and has a term of four years. In his six years in office as County Executive, Coons balanced the budget with a surplus in fiscal year 2010 by cutting spending and raising taxes.[11] New Castle County maintained a AAA bond rating throughout his tenure.[12]
| Office | Type | Location | Elected | Took Office | Left Office | notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County Council | Legislature | Wilmington | 2000 | January 2, 2001 | January 4, 2005 | President |
| County Executive | Executive | Wilmington | 2004 | January 4, 2005 | Incumbent | — |
Election results
| Year | Office | Election | Subject | Party | Votes | % | Opponent | Party | Votes | % | |||
| 2000 | County Council | Primary | Christopher A. Coons | Democratic | 7,520 | 48% | Vincent D'Anna Martha Denison Dwight L. Davis |
Democratic | 3,220 2,414 2,370 |
21% 16% 15% | |||
| 2000 | County Council | General | Christopher A. Coons | Democratic | 113,050 | 56% | Michael Ramone | Republican | 87,462 | 44% | |||
| 2004 | County Executive | Primary | Christopher A. Coons | Democratic | 17,584 | 67% | Sherry Freebery Richard Korn |
Democratic | 4,702 4,130 |
18% 15% | |||
| 2004 | County Executive | General | Christopher A. Coons | Democratic | 131,397 | 58% | Christopher Castagno | Republican | 93,424 | 42% | |||
| 2010 | United States Senator | General | Christopher A. Coons | Democratic | 173,900 | 56.6% | Christine O'Donnell | Republican | 123,025 | 40% |
References
- ^ a b Gibson, Ginger (2010-11-02). "Coons defeats O'Donnell in U.S. Senate race". delawareonline.com. Retrieved 2010-11-03.
- ^ a b "Meet Chris Coons". Chris Coons for U.S. Senate. Retrieved 2010-09-17. (campaign web site biography)
- ^ Taylor, Jessica. Chris Coons declares Delaware Senate bid. Politico. 4 February 2010.
- ^ Kleefeld, Eric (February 3, 2010). "Democrat Chris Coons Running For Delaware Senate Seat". TPMDC. Talking Points Memo. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
- ^ Yearick, Bob (June 15, 2010). "Castle vs. Coons". Delaware Today. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
- ^ a b CNN staff (September 15, 2010). "Chris Coons: Delaware's surprise favorite". CNN Politics. CNN. Retrieved 2010-09-16.
{{cite news}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ a b "Rodel Foundation Delaware : About". Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^ Chase, Randall. (September 23, 2010) O'Donnell foe's career marked by political shift. Associated Press.
- ^ Chadderdon, Jesse. (February 3, 2010) Coons to challenge Castle for Senate seat. Community News.
- ^ "Election 2010: Delaware Senate". Rasmussen Reports. September 16, 2010. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
- ^ Delaware Online (September 24, 2010). "Coons for Senate ad claims he balanced county budget as NCCo executive". Caesar Meter Delaware Fact Check. Wilmington News Journal. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
- ^ "Fitch Rates New Castle County, DE GOs 'AAA'; Outlook Stable". Business Wire. Forbes. September 9, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
External links
- Chris Coons for U.S. Senate official campaign site
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- W.L.Gore & Assoc. company
- "I Have a Dream" Foundation
