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Linda McCulloch
Linda McCulloch (born December 21, 1954, in Springfield, Ohio) is a former Democratic Secretary of State of Montana. She was first elected to the statewide position in 2008, and was Montana's first female secretary of state.[1] McCulloch was ineligble to seek re-election in 2016 due to term limits.
Biography
McCulloch was born in Ohio but has spent her entire adult life in Montana. She moved to her now-home state in 1978 to pursue an undergraduate degree in Elementary Education at the University of Montana. There, she subsequently received her Master's degree, specializing in the supervision of library media programs. She began her teaching career in Ashland, Montana, and then spent almost 20 years in Bonner teaching elementary school, serving as the school librarian.[2]
Education
- B.A., in elementary education, University of Montana (1982)
- M.A., in elementary education, University of Montana (1990)
Political career
Montana Secretary of State (2009-2017)
State law barred McCulloch from running for a third term as Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2008, so McCulloch chose to run for Secretary of State instead. She narrowly beat her Republican opponent, Brad Johnson, and officially took office in January 2009. MuCulloch successfully won re-election on November 6, 2012. She was term-limited and did not seek re-election in 2016.
Secretary of State Project
- See also: Secretary of State Project
ActBlue reported that McCulloch received a substantial donation of at least $19,407 from 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.[3][4]
Superintendent of Public Instruction (2001-2009)
McCulloch successfully ran for Superintendent of Public Instruction in the state in 2000 and was re-elected to the office in 2004.
Montana House of Representatives (1995-2001)
Linda McCulloch began her political career serving the people of Montana as a representative in the Montana State House of Representatives, being elected to the position in 1994. She retained the role for six years.
Elections
2016
McCulloch was ineligble to seek re-election in 2016 due to term limits.
2012
McCulloch won re-election in 2012.[5] She faced her predecessor Brad Johnson (R), whom she unseated in 2008, and Roger Roots (L) in the general election contest on November 6, 2012.
| Montana Secretary of State General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Linda McCulloch Incumbent |
51.4% | 245,024 | |
| Republican | Brad Johnson | 45.1% | 214,976 | |
| Libertarian | Roger Roots | 3.5% | 16,622 | |
| Total Votes | 476,622 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State | ||||
| Montana Secretary of State Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
| Linda McCulloch |
100% | 85,189 | ||
| Total Votes | 85,189 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State. | ||||
Endorsements
- Montana Chamber of Commerce[6]
2008
McCulloch defeated Republican Brad Johnson and Constitution Party candidate Sieglinde Sharbono to become Montana Secretary of State in the November 2008 general election. She was unopposed in the Democratic primary.[7]
| Montana Secretary of State, 2008 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Linda McCulloch |
49.3% | 233,717 | |
| Republican | Brad Johnson | 48.2% | 228,412 | |
| Constitution | Sieglinde Sharbono | 2.5% | 11,722 | |
| Total Votes | 473,851 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State | ||||
2004
In the 2004 Race for Superintendent of Public Instruction, McCulloch faced Republican Bob Anderson in the general election, winning with almost 57% of the vote.
| Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction, 2004 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Linda McCulloch Incumbent |
56.9% | 246,204 | |
| Republican | Bob Anderson | 43.1% | 186,338 | |
| Total Votes | 432,542 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State | ||||
2000
In the 2000 Race for Superintendent of Public Instruction, McCulloch defeated Republican opponent Elaine Sollie Herman by a margin of 12%.
| Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction, 2000 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Linda McCulloch |
52.8% | 206,941 | |
| Republican | Elaine Sollie Herman | 41.3% | 162,069 | |
| Reform | Larry D. Foust | 5.9% | 22,952 | |
| Total Votes | 391,962 | |||
| Election results via Montana 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.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Linda + McCulloch + Montana + Secretary"
Contact information
Capitol contact
Capitol Address:
Montana Secretary of State
Post Office Box 202801
Helena, MT 59620-2801
Phone: (406) 444-2034
Fax: (406) 444-3976
E-mail: sos@mt.gov
Campaign Contact
McCulloch for Montana’s Vote
P.O. Box 352
Helena, MT 59624
See also
| Montana | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
- Montana Secretary of State
- Secretary of State
- Montana secretary of state election, 2012
- Governor of Montana
- Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction
External links
- Official Montana Secretary of State website
- Project Vote Smart - Linda McCulloch biography
- McCulloch on Twitter
- Campaign contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2000, 1998, 1996, 1994
Footnotes
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "Biography," accessed September 15, 2012
- ↑ McCulloch for Montana, "About Linda," accessed March 2, 2012
- ↑ ActBlue - Secretary of State Project Donations
- ↑ American Spectator, "SOS in Minnesota" 7 Nov. 2008
- ↑ Billings Gazette, "Many Montanans scoping out 2012 political races ," June 12, 2011
- ↑ Great Falls Tribune, "Old foes tangle in race for Montana secretary of state," October 25, 2012
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State - 2008 Primary Election Results
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Brad Johnson (R) |
Montana Secretary of State 2009-2017 |
Succeeded by Corey Stapleton (R) |
| Preceded by ' |
Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction 2001-2009 |
Succeeded by Denise Juneau |
| |||||||||||||||||||
