Debra Bowen
| Debra Bowen | ||
 | ||
| California Secretary of State | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| 2007 - Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| January 5, 2015 | ||
| Years in position | 6 | |
| Party | Democratic | |
| Predecessor | Bruce McPherson (R) | |
| Compensation | ||
| Base salary | $130,490 | |
| Elections and appointments | ||
| Last election | November 2, 2010 | |
| First elected | November 7, 2006 | |
| Next election | Term-limited | |
| Term limits | 2 terms | |
| Prior offices | ||
| California State Senate | ||
| 1998-2006 | ||
| California State Assembly | ||
| 1992-1998 | ||
| Education | ||
| High school | Guilford High School | |
| Bachelor's | Michigan State University (1976) | |
| J.D. | University of Virginia School of Law (1979) | |
| Personal | ||
| Birthday | October 27, 1955 | |
| Place of birth | Rockford, Illinois | |
| Profession | Attorney | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
| Personal website | ||
| Campaign website | ||
Contents |
Biography
Bowen attended Michigan State University for her undergraduate degree, and later received her law degree, in 1979, from the University of Virginia School of Law.[2]
Before entering politics, Bowen practiced corporate, tax and ERISA law at the firms of Winston and Strawn and Hughes, Hubbard & Reed. Her husband is Mark Nechodom, Senior Advisor for Environmental Markets in the office of the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.[3]
Bowen has served in several other roles throughout her career, including, but not limited to:
| State Government |
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| State executive officials |
| State legislatures |
| Elections |
| 2012 • 2011 • 2010 |
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- Member, Court Technology Advisory Committee, Judicial Council (2000-present)
- Chair, Assembly Natural Resources Committee
- Member, Heal the Bay Legal Committee
- Chair, National Conference of State Legislatures E-Communications Steering Committee
- Executive Board, National Conference of State Legislatures
- Member, National Conference of State Legislatures Task Force on State and Local Taxation of Telecommunications and Electronic Commerce
- Chair, Senate Elections, Reapportionment & Constitutional Amendments Committee
- Chair, Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee
Education
- Graduated from Guilford High School (1973)
- Bachelor's degree, Michigan State University (1976)
- Juris Doctorate degree, University of Virginia School of Law (1979)
Political career
California Secretary of State (2006-present)
Bowen was first elected to the office in 2006 and re-elected in 2010. Bowen's current term will end in January 2015, after which she will be constitutionally barred from holding office by term limits.
Taxpayer Funded Trip
The Los Angeles Times reported in late-October 2010 that two years earlier Secretary of State Debra Bowen initially had taxpayers foot the bill "when she went to the Democratic National Convention in Denver to see Barack Obama accept the party's nomination as president." [4] She said that expenses for that and another trip in April 2010 were accidentally placed on a state credit card rather then the one for her campaign account. Bowen has since reimbursed the state for $1,595 from her campaign account to make up for the clerical error.
Secretary of State Project
- See also: Secretary of State Project
In 2006, Bowen, who was named "one of the most progressive Secretaries of State in the nation," received the endorsement of the Secretary of State Project, a below-the-radar 527 political organization whose purpose is to "wrestling control of the country from the Republican Party" through the process of "removing their political operatives from deciding who can vote and whose votes will count," namely the office of Secretary of State in many cases. [5]
She again received the endorsement of the political activist group in the midst of the 2010 election cycle.[6]
California State Senate (1998-2006)
Prior to being elected as California's Secretary of State in 2006, Bowen was a member of the California State Senate, representing the 28th State Senate District, a role she maintained until December 2006 when her service ended due to state term limit laws.
In her eight-year tenure as a state senator, Bowen did not shy away from voting for controversial pieces of legislation. Bowen voted in favor of SCR 113, which recognized May 1, 2006, as The Great American Boycott 2006, in order to educate people in California and the United States about the contributions of immigrants in California. Organizers called for supporters to abstain from buying, selling, working, and attending school, in order to demonstrate through direct action the extent to which the labor obtained of illegal immigrants is needed for the economy of the United States. Supporters of the boycott demanded general amnesty and legalization programs. Opponents of the boycott saw it as promotion of illegal immigration. The proposal Bowen supported passed by a vote of 24 to 13 on April 27th, 2006.
On May 11, 2006, SB 1437, also known as Sexual Diversity Content in Public School Curriculums, a bill co-sponsored by Bowen, passed by a vote of 22 to 15. The bill says that "no teacher shall give instruction nor shall a school district sponsor any activity that reflects adversely upon persons because of their ... gender ... sexual orientation." SB 1437 was controversial with religious advocates because it "would remove 'sex-specific' terms such as 'mom' and 'dad' from textbooks." [7] According to the California Senate Judiciary Committee, "The bill also would direct the school governing boards to include only instructional material that accurately portrays the cultural, racial, gender and sexual diversity of our society, and, in instructional material for the social sciences, include the contributions of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender to the economic, political and social development of California and the United States of America." After being enacted by the state senate, SB 1437 was vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in September 2006.
Bowen voted on June 1st, 2006, in support of SB 1160, a measure that would require the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue drivers licenses to undocumented workers, or illegal aliens, in the state of California. The bill passed by a vote count of 23 to 15.
ACORN
Debra Bowen received the endorsement of ACORN-PAC in her 2006 election bid. In spite of the embattled nature of the organization, she continued to display her endorsement on her Sacramento office wall. [8]
California State Assembly (1992-1998)
Bowen served on the California State Assembly, representing the 53rd Assembly District.[1]
Elections
2010
- 2010 Race for Secretary of State - Democratic Primary
- Debra Bowen ran unopposed in this contest
| 2010 Race for Secretary of State - General Election [9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party |  Debra Bowen
|
53.2% | |
| Republican Party | Damon Dunn | 38.4% | |
| Green Party | Ann Menasche | 3.0% | |
| Libertarian Party | Christina M. Tobin | 2.2% | |
| American Independent Party | Merton D. Short | 1.6% | |
| Peace and Freedom Party | Marylou Cabral | 1.6% | |
| Total Votes | 9,336,900 | ||
2006
| 2006 Race for Secretary of State - Democratic Primary [10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | Debra Bowen
|
60.9% | |
| Democratic Party | Deborah V. Ortiz | 39.1% | |
| Total Votes | 2,163,961 | ||
| 2006 Race for Secretary of State - General Election [11] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | Debra Bowen
|
48.1% | |
| Republican Party | Bruce McPherson | 45.0% | |
| Green Party | Forrest Hill | 2.2% | |
| Write-In | 4.7% | ||
| Total Votes | 8,385,573 | ||
Campaign donors
Ballotpedia collects information on campaign donors for each year in which a candidate or incumbent is running for election. The following table offers a breakdown of Debra Bowen's donors each year.[12] Click [show] for more information.
| Debra Bowen's Campaign Contributions | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 California Secretary of State | 2006 California Secretary of State | 2002 California State Senate District 28 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total Raised | $715,056 | $1,460,591 | $253,591 | ||||||||||||||||
| Total Raised by General Election Opponent | $1,030,404 (Republican) $23,970 (Libertarian) | $2,383,068 (Republican) $35,806 (Green) $1,245 (Peace & Freedom) | $18,388 (Republican) | ||||||||||||||||
| Top 5 contributors | California Democratic Party | $59,034 | San Luis Obispo County Democratic Central committee | $25,000 | Consumer Attorneys of California | $6,000 | |||||||||||||
| Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters | $25,800 | California State Council of Service Employees | $22,200 | California Cable and Telecommunications Association | $6,000 | ||||||||||||||
| California Teachers Association | $25,800 | State Building and Construction Trades Council of California | $22,200 | California School Employees Association | $6,000 | ||||||||||||||
| California Labor Federation AFL-CIO | $25,800 | California State Council of Laborers | $21,100 | California Teachers Association | $6,000 | ||||||||||||||
| Operating Engineers Local 12 | $19,300 | California Democratic Party | $18,599 | California Applicants Attorneys Association | $6,000 | ||||||||||||||
| Individuals | $186,010 | $636,285 | $14,925 | ||||||||||||||||
| Institutions | $418,852 | $538,231 | $225,266 | ||||||||||||||||
| In-state donations | $677,313 | $1,341,251 | $219,826 | ||||||||||||||||
| Out-of-state donations | $32,800 | $78,508 | $24,584 | ||||||||||||||||
Personal
Debra Bowen currently resides in Marina del Rey, California with her husband, Mark Nechodom, and their daughter, Maya. She is a recipient of the Profile in Courage Award (2008) from the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum [13]
Recent news
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This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term "Debra + Bowen + California + Secretary"
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
Debra Bowen News Feed
- California Secretary of State Debra Bowen has a change of heart - California Forward Reporting
- Marin County receives commendation from Secretary of State Debra Bowen for ... - California Forward Reporting
- Cal-Access Database Available for Download by Labor Day, Says California ... - The National Law Review
- CA Bill To Upgrade Secretary of State Website Passes Senate - Independent Voter Network
- State elections official honors Marin voters - Marin Independent Journal
- Bowen agrees to boost campaign transparency for California public: Opinion - Los Angeles Daily News
- Capitol Alert: AM Alert: California SEIU lobbies lawmakers on health care - The San Luis Obispo Tribune
- AM Alert: California SEIU lobbies lawmakers on health care - Sacramento Bee (blog)
- National Voter Registration Act turns 20 as California expands its scope - California Forward Reporting
- California launches innovative plan to expand voter registration - People's World
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Contact Information
Capitol Address:
Office of Secretary of State
1500 11th Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 653-6814
See also
External links
- Official California Secretary of State website
- Debra Bowen's Facebook profile
- Debra Bowen's Twitter account
- Debra Bowen for Secretary of State Campaign website
- Project Vote Smart - Debra Bowen biography
- Campaign contributions: [1], 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 California Secretary of State, "About Debra Bowen," accessed July 7, 2011.
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography Debra Bowen," accessed September 24, 2012
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "About Debra Bowen," accessed July 7, 2011.
- ↑ Los Angeles Times "Whoops. About that taxpayer-funded travel…" 22 Oct. 2010
- ↑ American Spectator "SOS in Minnesota" 7 Nov. 2008
- ↑ Secretary of State Project - 2010 races
- ↑ World Net Daily "Bill promoting homosexuality in schools OK'd" 23 June, 2006
- ↑ Smart Voter - Additional Endorsements for Debra Bowen
- ↑ New York Times "2010 General Election Results" 2 Nov. 2010
- ↑ California Secretary of State - 2006 Primary Election Results
- ↑ California Secretary of State - 2006 General Election Results
- ↑ Follow the Money.org
- ↑ John F. Kennedy Library Foundation - Debra Bowen biography
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bruce McPherson (R) |
California Secretary of State 2006–present |
Succeeded by NA |
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