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Jerry Abramson
Jerry Edwin Abramson, (b. September 12, 1946, in Louisville, Kentucky) is the former Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky. He was first elected in 2011 on a ticket with incumbent Governor Steve Beshear.[1] They defeated David Williams/Richie Farmer (R) and Gatewood Galbraith/Dea Riley (I) in the general election on November 8, 2011.
Abramson was sworn into office on December 13, 2011, for a four-year term ending in December 2015. He resigned from office in November 2014 to join the Obama administration as a deputy assistant.[2]
Abramson entered politics as a member of the Louisville Board of Aldermen, representing the Third Ward from 1976 to 1980.[3] In 1985, he was elected as Mayor of Louisville and he served in this position from 1986 to 1999. He later won election as mayor of the new city-county structure and served two more terms, from 2003 to 2011. At the time he left office, Abramson held the record for the longest mayoral tenure in Louisville history.[4]
Biography
Abramson grew up in the suburbs of Lousiville and worked at his family's grocery in the Smokewood neighborhood of Lousiville. He received his B.A. in business from Indiana University and then spent two years in the army.
After earning a J.D. at Georgetown, Abramson returned to Kentucky and joined the law firm of Greenebaum Doll & McDonald, PLLC. He also served two terms as an alderman before his first mayoral run.[3]
Education
- Seneca High School
- BA, - Indiana University
- J.D. - Georgetown University Law Center
Political career
Kentucky Lieutenant Governor (2011-2014)
Abramson served as Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky from December 2011 to November 2014. He was originally elected on a ticket with Gov. Steve Beshear.
Mayor of Louisville (1986-1999, 2003-2011)
Abramson served as the Mayor of Louisville, Kentucky from 1986 to 1999, and from 2003 to 2011.[1] Abramson was elected to the position of mayor five times, leading to his nickname, “Mayor for Life.” At the time he left office, he was the longest-serving mayor in the city’s history.
Abramson served three terms as mayor of the City of Louisville in the 1980s and 1990s. In November 2002, he was elected for his fourth term as the first Mayor of Louisville Metro with nearly 74 percent of the vote.
Awards
| Year | Award | By whom |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Kentucky’s best civic leader (5-time) | Kentucky Monthly magazine |
| 2003 | Local Public Official of the Year | Governing magazine |
| 1993 | President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors | U.S. Conference of Mayors |
| 1993 | Distinguished Public Service Award | U.S. Conference of Mayors |
| 1987 | Top 20 Mayors in America | U.S. News & World Report |
| 1986 | Top 25 Most Dynamic Mayors in America | Newsweek |
Louisville Board of Aldermen (1976-1980)
Abramson served on the Louisville Board of Aldermen, representing the Third Ward from 1976 to 1980.[3]
Elections
2011
On November 8, 2011, Abramson and Beshear defeated David Williams/Richie Farmer (R) and Gatewood Galbraith/Dea Riley (I).
| Governor and Lt. Governor of Kentucky, 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Steve Beshear and Jerry E. Abramson |
55.7% | 464,245 | |
| Republican | David Williams and Richie Farmer | 35.3% | 294,034 | |
| Independent | Gatewood Galbraith and Dea Riley | 9% | 74,860 | |
| Total Votes | 833,139 | |||
| Election results via Kentucky Secretary of State | ||||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Along with his wife, Madeline, and their son, Abramson resides on Crescent Hill in Louisville.
See also
- Kentucky gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2011
- Gubernatorial elections, 2011
- Governor of Kentucky
- Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 University of Kentucky Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, "Jerry Abramson," accessed July 16, 2021 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "bio" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ The Courier-Journal, "Abramson, Luallen switch seems logical," November 15, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Project Vote Smart, "Lieutenant Governor Jerry E. Abramson's Biography," accessed March 28, 2013
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedjerrybio
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Daniel Mongiardo (D) |
Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky 2011 - 2014 |
Succeeded by Crit Luallen |
| |||||||||||||
