Jay Nixon
Jeremiah W. "Jay" Nixon is an American politician from Missouri. He has served as Missouri's Attorney General since 1993. He is a Democrat.
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Education, Early Career, and Personal Life
Nixon is a native of De Soto, Missouri. He earned his bachelor's degree in political science and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1978 and 1981, respectively. He is married to Georganne Wheeler Nixon; they have two children, Jeremiah, Jr., and Will. After earning his J.D., he was an attorney in private practice.
Political Career
Nixon was elected to the Missouri Senate in 1986. Two years later, he made his first bid for statewide office, an unsuccesful effort to oust incumbent U.S. Senator John Danforth. Nixon was first elected as Missouri's Attorney General on November 3, 1992, on a platform of fighting crime, cleaning up government corruption, and protecting consumers and the environment. Nixon followed William L. Webster as Attorney General, whose term had been plagued by scandal.
Nixon was re-elected as Attorney General in 1996. In 1998 he again made an unsuccesful run for U.S. Senate, this time losing to incumbent Republican Kit Bond. In 2000 and 2004 Nixon was again re-elected as Attorney General.
Accomplishments as Attorney General
One of the most popular programs Nixon has implemented is the state’s No Call program. More than 3.5 million Missourians are a part of the No Call list, which reduces unwanted telemarketing calls. Nixon also has recovered more than $1.2 million from telemarketers who violated the No Call law.
Nixon’s victory in the U.S. Supreme Court in Nixon v. Shrink reinstated Missouri’s campaign contribution limits and cleared the way nationally for campaign finance reform. In two other cases of significance, Nixon’s work in the Blue Cross and Blue Shield and the Health Midwest cases have resulted in the formation of the state’s two largest health-care foundations, which will use more than $1.5 billion to help provide health-care services to underserved populations of the state. Litigation by Nixon against tobacco companies for illegally marketing cigarettes to young people resulted in the largest settlement in the history of the state.
Nixon created an Agriculture and Environment Division, which has worked to protect the interests of the state regarding the flow of the Missouri River. Attorneys take legal action to stop pollution of the state’s air, water and soil and to look after Missouri’s agricultural interests.
Controversies
As Attorney General, Nixon has also been heavily involved in controversial decisions regarding school desegregation, capital punishment, and abortion. Nixon has overseen the state's involvement in the court settlements that ended mandatory busing to achieve desegregation in St. Louis and Kansas City's public schools. His role in the desegregation cases has caused friction with some African American leaders. Nixon is also a supporter of capital punishment. This has also caused him political difficulties with opponents of capital punishment. Finally, as Attorney General, Nixon is charged with defending legal challenges to the state's laws, including those regulating abortion. This has been politically awkward for Nixon, who is pro-choice and must defend legal challenges to pro-life legislation.
Future Political Plans
Nixon has continued to win re-election as Attorney General by large margins during a time when other Democrats have had increasing difficulty winning elections in Missouri. This has led many political observers to speculate that Nixon may decide to challenge Governor Matt Blunt in 2008. As of November 2005, Nixon has not specified his future political plans.