John N. Kennedy
Encyclopedia
John Neely Kennedy is the Republican
state treasurer of Louisiana
. He was re-elected without opposition to his fourth term as State Treasurer on September 8, 2011.
near McComb
in southwestern Mississippi
. He was reared in Zachary
in East Baton Rouge Parish. In the summer of 1969, Kennedy represented Louisiana at Boys Nation
in Washington, D.C.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree from Vanderbilt University
in Nashville
, Tennessee
, in 1973, a Juris Doctor
from the University of Virginia School of Law
at Charlottesville
, Virginia in 1977, and an advanced law
degree (B.C.L.) in 1979 from the University of Oxford
in England
. While a student at Vanderbilt, he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and senior class president. Prior to entering state politics, he was a partner in the law firm of Chaffe, McCall, Phillips, Toler, and Sarpy, working in the Baton Rouge
and New Orleans
offices of the firm.
. Two years later, he was appointed cabinet secretary and served in that post until 1992. In 1991, he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for state attorney general. The winner of the race was Democrat Richard Ieyoub
of Lake Charles
. Following his first stint in state government, Kennedy returned to the private practice of law until 1996. That same year, he was appointed Secretary of the state Department of Revenue in the cabinet of Republican Governor Murphy J. "Mike" Foster, Jr.
Kennedy left the Foster administration when he was elected State Treasurer in 1999, having unseated the incumbent Democrat Kenneth "Ken" Duncan, 621,796 (55.6 percent) to 497,319 (44.4 percent). Kennedy was reelected without opposition in 2003.
In 2004, he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for the United States Senate
. He ran a distant third in Louisiana's unique nonpartisan blanket primary, losing to the outright winner, Republican U.S. Representative David Vitter
who polled more votes than Kennedy (15 percent), State Senator
Arthur Morrell (3 percent), and Democratic Congressman Christopher John
(29 percent) combined to win in the primary for the seat without a formal general election
, popularly called the runoff in Louisiana.
After being courted by the Republican party for months, Kennedy announced in a letter to his constituents that he was leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Republicans as of August 27, 2007. In his letter, he announced that he would run again for state Treasurer.
During the term to which he was elected in 2007, Kennedy devised 24 points by which the State of Louisiana could save money.
in Baton Rouge and a volunteer substitute teacher in the East Baton Rouge Parish public schools. He is married to the former Rebecca Ann Stulb, an attorney who also worked in the Chaffe McCall law firm. The couple lives with their son, Preston Kennedy, in Madisonville
, a town in St. Tammany Parish
.
He is Methodist. He is unrelated to the Kennedy family
of Massachusetts
.
Considered an expert on state finance, Kennedy often appears on media programs to discuss public issues, including The Moon Griffon
Show, a radio talk show based from Monroe
.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
state treasurer of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. He was re-elected without opposition to his fourth term as State Treasurer on September 8, 2011.
Early life and career
Kennedy was born in CentrevilleCentreville, Mississippi
Centreville is a town in Amite and Wilkinson Counties in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The population was 1,680 at the 2000 census. It is part of the McComb, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
near McComb
McComb, Mississippi
McComb is a city in Pike County, Mississippi, United States, about south of Jackson. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 13,644. It is the principal city of the McComb, Mississippi, Micropolitan Statistical Area...
in southwestern Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. He was reared in Zachary
Zachary, Louisiana
Zachary is a city in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States, in the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 11,275 at the 2000 census.-History:...
in East Baton Rouge Parish. In the summer of 1969, Kennedy represented Louisiana at Boys Nation
Boys Nation
Boys Nation is an annual civic training event run by the American Legion.Each year, two delegates in the summer after their junior year of high school are selected from each of the forty-nine American Legion Boys State programs in the U.S....
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
He earned a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, in 1973, a Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from the University of Virginia School of Law
University of Virginia School of Law
The University of Virginia School of Law was founded in Charlottesville in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as one of the original subjects taught at his "academical village," the University of Virginia. The law school maintains an enrollment of approximately 1,100 students in its initial degree program...
at Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
, Virginia in 1977, and an advanced law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
degree (B.C.L.) in 1979 from the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. While a student at Vanderbilt, he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and senior class president. Prior to entering state politics, he was a partner in the law firm of Chaffe, McCall, Phillips, Toler, and Sarpy, working in the Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
and New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
offices of the firm.
Political career
In 1988, Kennedy became special counsel to Governor Charles E. "Buddy" Roemer, IIIBuddy Roemer
Charles Elson "Buddy" Roemer III is an American politician who served as the 52nd Governor of Louisiana, from 1988 to 1992. He was elected as a Democrat but switched to the Republican Party on March 11, 1991...
. Two years later, he was appointed cabinet secretary and served in that post until 1992. In 1991, he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for state attorney general. The winner of the race was Democrat Richard Ieyoub
Richard Ieyoub
Richard Phillip Ieyoub, Sr. , is a Baton Rouge lawyer and a Democratic politician who was the attorney general of Louisiana from 1992 to 2004. Ieyoub was the Calcasieu Parish district attorney in Lake Charles from 1984 to 1992, and is presently with the Baton Rouge firm Couhig Partners...
of Lake Charles
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Located in Calcasieu Parish, a major cultural, industrial, and educational center in the southwest region of the state, and one of the most important in...
. Following his first stint in state government, Kennedy returned to the private practice of law until 1996. That same year, he was appointed Secretary of the state Department of Revenue in the cabinet of Republican Governor Murphy J. "Mike" Foster, Jr.
Murphy J. Foster, Jr.
Murphy James "Mike" Foster, Jr. served as 53rd Governor of Louisiana from January 1996 until January 2004. Foster's father was Murphy J. Foster, Jr., but Mike Foster uses "Jr." even though he is technically Murphy J. Foster, III. Foster is a businessman, landowner, and sportsman in St...
Kennedy left the Foster administration when he was elected State Treasurer in 1999, having unseated the incumbent Democrat Kenneth "Ken" Duncan, 621,796 (55.6 percent) to 497,319 (44.4 percent). Kennedy was reelected without opposition in 2003.
In 2004, he was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. He ran a distant third in Louisiana's unique nonpartisan blanket primary, losing to the outright winner, Republican U.S. Representative David Vitter
David Vitter
David Vitter is the junior United States Senator from Louisiana and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he served in the United States House of Representatives, representing the suburban Louisiana's 1st congressional district. He served as a member of the Louisiana House of...
who polled more votes than Kennedy (15 percent), State Senator
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
Arthur Morrell (3 percent), and Democratic Congressman Christopher John
Chris John
Christopher Charles "Chris" John is American politician who was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1997 to 2005, representing Louisiana's 7th congressional district.-Early life:...
(29 percent) combined to win in the primary for the seat without a formal general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
, popularly called the runoff in Louisiana.
After being courted by the Republican party for months, Kennedy announced in a letter to his constituents that he was leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Republicans as of August 27, 2007. In his letter, he announced that he would run again for state Treasurer.
During the term to which he was elected in 2007, Kennedy devised 24 points by which the State of Louisiana could save money.
Personal life
In addition to his duties as state treasurer, Kennedy is an adjunct law professor at Louisiana State UniversityLouisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge and a volunteer substitute teacher in the East Baton Rouge Parish public schools. He is married to the former Rebecca Ann Stulb, an attorney who also worked in the Chaffe McCall law firm. The couple lives with their son, Preston Kennedy, in Madisonville
Madisonville, Louisiana
Madisonville is a town in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 677 at the 2000 census. It is part of the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, a town in St. Tammany Parish
St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana
St. Tammany Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, in the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area. The parish seat is Covington....
.
He is Methodist. He is unrelated to the Kennedy family
Kennedy family
In the United States, the phrase Kennedy family commonly refers to the family descending from the marriage of the Irish-Americans Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald that was prominent in American politics and government. Their political involvement has revolved around the...
of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
.
Considered an expert on state finance, Kennedy often appears on media programs to discuss public issues, including The Moon Griffon
Moon Griffon
Blane M. Griffon, known as Moon Griffon is a conservative radio talk show host who broadcasts statewide through station KMLB FM in Monroe, the seat of Ouachita Parish in northeastern Louisiana. He has sometimes been called the "Rush Limbaugh of Louisiana" though his program reflects his distinct...
Show, a radio talk show based from Monroe
Monroe, Louisiana
Monroe is a city in and the parish seat of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,107, making it the eighth largest city in Louisiana. A July 1, 2007, United States Census Bureau estimate placed the population at 51,208, but 51,636...
.
External links
- Louisiana Department of the Treasury - John Neely Kennedy, State Treasurer official state site
- John Kennedy for State Treasurer official campaign site
- Junto Society - John Neely Kennedy biography
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Follow the Money - John Kennedy
- 2007 2005 2003 1999 Louisiana Treasurer campaign contributions
- John MaginnisJohn Maginnis (Louisiana political writer)John Maginnis is a writer of columns and commentaries on current political events in Louisiana. His column, always about the latest political event in Louisiana, appears in newspapers and other sources around the state. His web site is read by political analysts nationwide as a barometer of...
. Treasure the Moment, Gambit Weekly, March 13, 2001.
- Jan Moller, Treasurer Bolts to GOP The Times Picayune, August 27, 2007