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Luther Strange

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Luther J. Strange III
Image of Luther J. Strange III
Prior offices
Attorney General of Alabama

U.S. Senate Alabama
Successor: Doug Jones
Predecessor: Jeff Sessions

Education

High school

Shades Valley High School, 1970

Bachelor's

Tulane University, 1976

Law

Tulane University Law School, 1979

Personal
Religion
Christian: Episcopalian
Profession
Attorney



Luther J. Strange, III (born March 1, 1953, in Birmingham, Alabama) is a former Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Alabama. Strange was first appointed to the Senate position by Gov. Robert Bentley on February 9, 2017. He replaced Jeff Sessions, who was confirmed as United States Attorney General. Strange ran in the Republican primary runoff election on September 26, 2017, and lost to former chief justice Roy Moore. Strange and Moore were the top two vote-getters in the primary election on August 15, 2017, but a runoff was triggered because neither candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote.[1]

Strange is the former Republican Attorney General of Alabama. He was first elected to the statewide position in 2010 after first upsetting the previous officer, Republican Troy King, in the state's primary contest on June 1, 2010.[2] He went on to win the general election on November 2, 2010, and assumed office on January 17, 2011. Strange's first four-year term ended on January 19, 2015, and he won re-election to a second term on November 4, 2014.[3]

Prior to becoming attorney general, Strange operated his own practice in Birmingham. Before that, he worked for the lobbying firm Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, LLC.

Strange's formal entry into state politics was in 2006, when he ran for Lieutenant Governor. Though he easily secured the Republican nomination, he lost narrowly in the general election to former governor Jim Folsom, Jr. Before ever stepping up to the podium as a candidate, Strange had already established himself as an active member of the Republican Party of Alabama behind the scenes. He founded the Red Mountain Republican Club in 1997 and served as the Chair of the Committee to Elect Bill Pryor in 1998 and 2002.

Biography

Strange was born and raised in Birmingham, Al, where he was heavily involved in the community. He participated in Eagle Scouts and sports, basketball in particular, which he played on scholarship at Tulane University while pursuing his bachelor's degree in political science.[2]

After receiving his law degree, also from Tulane, Strange began working for Sonat, Inc., a large Fortune 500 American energy holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. He was later promoted to direct the company's Washington D.C. office. Strange then joined with lawyer Jack Selden to open up their own private practice law firm, which eventually merged with Bradley, Arant, Rose, & White in 1998. Ten years later, he left and formed his own law firm, Strange, LLC, which focuses on economic development work. Strange, LCC was ranked among the "Best Law Firms" by U.S. News in 2010, owing in large part to Strange's efforts advising companies on growth and expansion opportunities within the state of Alabama.[4]

Strange is a former recipient of the Birmingham Business Journal's "Best of the Bar Award." He is on the Talladega College Board of Trustees, a member of the Birmingham Rotary Club and the Monday Morning Quarterback Club.

Career

  • 2017-2018: U.S. Senator from Alabama
  • 2011-2017: Attorney general of Alabama
  • 1979: Graduated from Tulane University Law School with a J.D.
  • 1976: Graduated from Tulane University with a B.A.

Key votes

See also: Key votes

Ballotpedia monitors legislation that receives a vote and highlights the ones that we consider to be key to understanding where elected officials stand on the issues. To read more about how we identify key votes, click here.

Key votes: 115th Congress, 2017-2018

For detailed information about each vote, click here.

Issues

Attorney general

Fighting public corruption

Strange forged a collaborative initiative called the Special Prosecutions Alliance in April 2012. Dedicated to combating public corruption, the alliance brings together several state agencies, including the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, the Ethics Commission, Department of Public Safety, Insurance Department and Criminal Justice Information Center. Strange appointed Special Prosecutor Matt Hart to lead the division, with the accompanying warning that officials who violate the public trust can expect to be held to account "regardless of their political affiliation or position." In his April 12 announcement of the alliance's launch, Strange stressed the importance of protecting "the integrity of government and taxpayers' money during times of scarce resources."[45]

Birth control mandate

On March 22, 2012 Strange filed a motion with the US District Court in Birmingham, Alabama to become co-plaintiff alongside EWTN Global Catholic Television Network in its existing suit against the federal government for requiring employers to provide contraception coverage in their businesses' healthcare plans.[46] The organization's file claim was that the mandate violates the convictions of religious employers, and Strange agreed, citing his statutory responsibilities to protect the missions of Alabama charitable institutions against this "interfering" federal regulation. He pledged to throw the weight of the office behind EWTN, which Strange said is "the largest religious media network in the world."[47]

Elections

2017

See also: United States Senate special election in Alabama, 2017

Republican primary election results

U.S. Senate, Alabama Republican primary, August 15, 2017
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRoy Moore 38.9% 164,524
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLuther Strange 32.8% 138,971
     Republican Mo Brooks 19.7% 83,287
     Republican Trip Pittman 6.9% 29,124
     Republican Randy Brinson 0.6% 2,621
     Republican Bryan Peeples 0.4% 1,579
     Republican Mary Maxwell 0.4% 1,543
     Republican James Beretta 0.3% 1,078
     Republican Dom Gentile 0.1% 303
     Republican Joseph Breault 0.1% 252
Total Votes 423,282
Source: Alabama Secretary of State

Republican primary runoff election results

U.S. Senate, Alabama Republican primary runoff, September 26, 2017
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngRoy Moore 54.6% 262,641
     Republican Luther Strange 45.4% 218,505
Total Votes 481,146
Source: Alabama Secretary of State

General election results

U.S. Senate, Alabama general election, December 12, 2017
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democrat Green check mark transparent.pngDoug Jones 50% 673,896
     Republican Roy Moore 48.3% 651,972
     Independent Write-in 1.7% 22,852
Total Votes 1,348,720
Source: Alabama Secretary of State


2014

See also: Alabama attorney general election, 2014

Strange ran for re-election to the office of Attorney General of Alabama. He was uncontested for the Republican nomination in the June 3 primary. The general election took place on November 4, 2014.

Results

Attorney General of Alabama, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLuther Strange Incumbent 58.4% 681,973
     Democratic Joseph Lister Hubbard 41.4% 483,771
     Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.2% 2,157
Total Votes 1,167,901
Election results via Alabama Secretary of State

Race background

Mike Hubbard indictment

The October 20 indictment of Alabama State House Speaker Mike Hubbard (R) on ethics charges became a topic of discussion in the 2014 attorney general race. Attorney General Luther Strange (R) appointed special prosecutor Van Jones in 2013 to oversee a grand jury investigation of Hubbard, who was accused of using his office for personal gain. Hubbard's indictment on 23 charges drew the attention of Strange's 2014 opponent, Joseph Lister Hubbard (D), who stated that deputy attorney general Sonny Reagan was suspended for allegedly tampering with the investigation.[48] Reagan denied this accusation and called for an independent investigation into it.[49]

Joe Hubbard, who is not related to Mike Hubbard, also accused Strange of allowing government corruption to go unchecked during his time in office. The Democratic candidate suggested that Strange spent more time worrying about illegal gambling in the state rather than more serious crimes. Strange's campaign spokesperson, Mike Lewis, countered that the attorney general was proactive in corruption cases as demonstrated in the Mike Hubbard case. Lewis further criticized Joe Hubbard’s stance, alleging influence from campaign contributions by the Poarch Creek tribe and referring to him as a 'parrot of big casino bosses.'"[48]

2010

See also: Alabama Attorney General election, 2010
Luther Strange for Alabama Attorney General Campaign logo

General

On November 2, 2010, Luther Strange (R) won election to the office of Attorney General of Alabama. He defeated James H. Anderson (D) in the general election.

Attorney General of Alabama, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngLuther Strange (R) 58.8% 868,520
     Democratic James H. Anderson 41.1% 606,270
     Write-in N/A 0.1% 1,285
Total Votes 1,476,075
Election results via Alabama Secretary of State.

Primary

With 60.1 percent of the vote, Strange earned the Republican Party's nomination in the 2010 partisan primary race against incumbent Troy King.

2010 Race for Attorney General - Republican Primary[50]
Party Candidate Vote Percentage
     Republican Party Approveda Luther Strange 60.1%
     Republican Party Troy King 39.9%
Total Votes 473,727

2006

2006 Race for Lieutenant Governor - Republican Primary
Party Candidate Vote Percentage
     Republican Party Approveda Luther Strange 48.1%[51]
     Republican Party George C. Wallace, Jr. 33.4%
     Republican Party Mo Brooks 15.6%
     Republican Party Hilbun Adams 2.9%
Total Votes 433,363
2006 Race for Lieutenant Governor - Republican Primary Run-Off
Party Candidate Vote Percentage
     Republican Party Approveda Luther Strange 54.8%
     Republican Party George C. Wallace, Jr. 45.2%
Total Votes 198,692
2006 Race for Lieutenant Governor - General Election
Party Candidate Vote Percentage
     Democratic Party Approveda Jim Folsom, Jr. 50.6%
     Republican Party Luther Strange 49.1%
Total Votes 1,243,279

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.


Luther J. Strange III campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2014Attorney General of AlabamaWon $3,203,273 N/A**
2010Attorney General of AlabamaWon $3,450,228 N/A**
2006Lieutenant Governor of AlabamaLost $5,244,849 N/A**
Grand total$11,898,350 N/A**
Sources: OpenSecretsFederal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. AL.com, "Luther Strange to replace Jeff Sessions in U.S. Senate," February 9, 2017
  2. 2.0 2.1 Luther Strange, "Meet Luther," accessed February 6, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  3. Luther Strange for Attorney General 2014 Official Campaign Website, "Homepage," accessed September 10, 2013
  4. State of Alabama Office of the AG, "About the AG," accessed February 6, 2012
  5. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment with an Amendment)," December 18, 2018
  6. Senate.gov, "On the Conference Report (Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 2)," December 11, 2018
  7. Senate.gov, "On the Nomination (Confirmation Brett M. Kavanaugh, of Maryland, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States)," October 6, 2018
  8. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture Re: Brett M. Kavanaugh to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States)," October 5, 2018
  9. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 2, As Amended)," June 28, 2018
  10. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Amdt. No. 1959)," February 15, 2018
  11. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Amdt. No. 1958 As Modified)," February 15, 2018
  12. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Amdt. No. 1948)," February 15, 2018
  13. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on Amdt. No. 1955)," February 15, 2018
  14. Senate.gov, "On Cloture on the Motion to Proceed (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Motion to Proceed to the Consideration of S. 2311)," January 29, 2018
  15. Senate.gov, "On the Amendment (McConnell Amdt. No. 667)," July 28, 2017
  16. Senate.gov, "On the Amendment (Paul Amdt. No. 271 )," July 26, 2017
  17. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Waive All Applicable Budgetary Discipline Re: Amdt. No. 270)," July 25, 2017
  18. Senate.gov, "On the Motion to Proceed (Motion to Proceed to H.R. 1628)," July 25, 2017
  19. U.S. Senate, "On the Nomination (Confirmation: Neil M. Gorsuch, of Colorado, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States)," April 7, 2017
  20. U.S. Senate, "On the Cloture Motion (Upon Reconsideration, Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Nomination of Neil M. Gorsuch of Colorado, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States)," April 6, 2017
  21. U.S. Senate, "On the Decision of the Chair (Shall the Decision of the Chair Stand as the Judgment of the Senate?)," April 6, 2017
  22. U.S. Senate, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Nomination of Neil M. Gorsuch, of Colorado, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States)," April 6, 2017
  23. Senate.gov, "On the Conference Report (Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 6157)," September 18, 2018
  24. Senate.gov, "On the Conference Report (Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 5895)," September 12, 2018
  25. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H. R. 6157 As Amended)," August 23, 2018
  26. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 5895 As Amended)," June 25, 2018
  27. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1625)," March 23, 2018
  28. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1892 with an Amendment (SA 1930))," February 9, 2018
  29. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 695)," February 8, 2018
  30. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment with Further Amendment)," January 22, 2018
  31. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 195)," January 22, 2018
  32. Senate.gov, "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture: House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 195)," January 19, 2018
  33. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1370)," December 21, 2017
  34. Senate.gov, "On the Motion to Recede from the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1 and Concur with Further Amendment ," December 20, 2017
  35. Senate.gov, "On the Joint Resolution (H.J. Res. 123)," December 7, 2017
  36. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 1 As Amended )," December 2, 2017
  37. Senate.gov, "On the Concurrent Resolution (H. Con. Res. 71 As Amended)," October 19, 2017
  38. Senate.gov, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amdt. to the Senate Amdt. with an Amdt. No. 808 to H.R. 601)," September 7, 2017
  39. U.S. Senate, "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 244)," May 4, 2017
  40. Senate.gov, "On the Joint Resolution (S.J. Res. 54, As Amended), December 13, 2018
  41. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 2810 As Amended)," September 18, 2017
  42. The Hill, "Senate sends $692B defense policy bill to Trump's desk," November 15, 2017
  43. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 3364)," July 27, 2017
  44. Senate.gov, "On Passage of the Bill (S. 722 As Amended)," June 15, 2017
  45. WSFA.com, "Attorney General announces corruption initiative," April 12, 2012
  46. CBS news, "Ala. Attorney General Joins Birth Control Lawsuit," March 22, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  47. The Wall Street Journal-Market Watch, "State of Alabama Joins EWTN Lawsuit Against HHS Mandate Press Release," March 22, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  48. 48.0 48.1 AL.com, "Luther Strange, Joe Hubbard battle over meaning of Mike Hubbard indictment in attorney general's race," October 22, 2014
  49. AL.com, "Deputy AG Sonny Reagan asks for independent investigation into dispute with other prosecutors," September 24, 2014
  50. Alabama Secretary of State - 2010 Republican Primary Election Results
  51. Even though Luther Strange received the most votes, he failed to receive over fifty percent of those votes required by Alabama state law. A runoff election between the top two vote recipients, therefore, was required to decide who went on to the general election.
Political offices
Preceded by
Jeff Sessions (R)
U.S. Senate, Alabama
2017-2018
Succeeded by
Doug Jones (D)
Preceded by
Troy King (R)
Alabama Attorney General
2011-2017
Succeeded by
Steve Marshall (R)


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
Republican Party (7)
Democratic Party (2)