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Michael Mauro
Michael Anthony Mauro (born September 29, 1948) is the former Iowa Commissioner of Labor, serving from May 1, 2011, to his retirement on April 1, 2019.[1][2]
Biography
Mauro served as the Democratic Iowa Secretary of State from 2006 until 2010. He was first elected to the statewide position in 2006. In January 2009, he announced that he would run for a second term in office.[3] Nearly a year and a half later, however, Mauro narrowly lost in the general election on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 to Republican Matt Schultz after receiving forty-seven percent of the vote.
Education
- Bachelor's degree, Drake University
Political career
Iowa Commissioner of Labor (2011-2019)
Mauro was appointed to the statewide position of Iowa Commissioner of Labor by Gov. Branstad effective May 1, 2011. He retired on April 1, 2019.
Iowa Secretary of State (2006-2010)
Mauro served as Iowa Secretary of State from 2006 until 2010. He was elected as a Democrat to the statewide position in 2006. He lost his bid for a second term to Republican challenger Matt Schultz in the 2010 general election.[4]
National Popular Vote Act
The National Popular Vote Act (NPVA) is part of a nationwide movement, backed mainly by prominent and influential left-leaning political activists, among them billionaire George Soros, seeking to undermine the electoral college. Rather then push for a federal amendment drastically altering this process or removing it altogether, proponents of NPVA have gone from state-to-state requesting states legislatures to vote in favor of entering an interstate agreement whereby each of the respective individual states is required to "award state electoral votes to the winner of the popular vote plurality, despite the vote in their own states."[5] It is believed that if a coalition of individual states controlling at least 270 electoral votes is formed, it could effectively disable the electoral college without having to drag out a lengthy, and most likely unsuccessful, constitutional amendment process. As of March 2010, only five states, none of them considered 'battleground' or 'swing' states, had entered the compact - New Jersey, Maryland, Illinois, Washington, and Hawaii, after the state legislature overrode the veto by the governor.
The problem, critics argue, is that this directly undermines the procedural method of making changes to the United States Constitution that the Founding Fathers established over two-hundred years ago. A week after SF 227, the National Popular Vote Plan bill, narrowly passed out the Iowa State Senate State Government Committee 8-7, Mauro voiced his concerns about the measure.[6] Insisting that the electoral college was established in the first place by the Founding Fathers to protect the electoral representation of less populated states, such as Iowa, he cautioned "lawmakers in leading a charge to adopt a resolution that could be detrimental to Iowa and our important role in choosing the President of the United States." He warned the ramifications of passing the National Popular Vote Plan bill would be "dramatic," resulting in Iowa losing its prominent place within future presidential campaigns.[7]
Office commercials
State Republicans accused both State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald and Secretary of State Mauro of using taxpayer funds to promote their re-election campaigns, disguising them as promotions of programs their offices oversee. Beginning on September 27, 2010, Mauro's Office released a radio/television advertisement "intended to help ensure that all Iowans, especially those who are disabled, learn about the Secretary of State’s AutoMARK ballot voting system that allows Iowans living with a disability to vote independently and in private."[8] While programs like this are no doubt important, critics argued, it was the timing of these advertisements in addition to the fact that Mauro introduced himself as the State's Secretary of State that had State Republican leaders upset.
Elections
2010
- See also: Iowa Secretary of State election, 2010
- 2010 Race for Secretary of State - Democratic Primary[9]
- Michael Mauro ran unopposed in this contest
| 2010 Race for Secretary of State - General Election[10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Republican Party |  Matt Schultz
|
49.8% | |
| Democratic Party | Michael Mauro | 47.0% | |
| Libertarian Party | Jake Porter | 3.1% | |
| Write-In | 0.1% | ||
| Total Votes | 1,080,281 | ||
2006
- 2006 Race for Secretary of State - Democratic Primary[11]
- Michael Mauro ran unopposed in this contest
| 2006 Race for Secretary of State - General Election[12] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | Michael A. Mauro
|
53.7% | |
| Republican Party | Mary Ann Hanusa | 46.3% | |
| Total Votes | 1,039,058 | ||
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.
Mauro resides in Des Moines, Iowa with his wife, Dorothy. The couple has had three children together.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Michael + Mauro + Iowa"
See also
External links
- Michael Mauro for Secretary of State Campaign website
- Michael Mauro's Facebook profile
- Project Vote Smart - Michael Mauro biography
Footnotes
- ↑ Eastern Iowa Government, "Branstad names Michael Mauro to be state labor commissioner May 1," December 30, 2010
- ↑ Iowa Workforce Development, "IOWA DIVISION OF LABOR COMMISSIONER MICHAEL MAURO ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT," accessed June 20, 2019
- ↑ Price of Politics ... etc. "Mauro to Seek Re-Election" 29 Jan. 2009
- ↑ Price of Politics ... etc. "Mauro to Seek Re-Election" 29 Jan. 2009
- ↑ Telegram & Gazette, "Massachusetts should reject National Popular Vote Plan" 14 Feb. 2008
- ↑ Ballot Access News, "Iowa National Popular Vote Bill Advances" 25 Feb. 2009
- ↑ Iowa Independent, "Mauro speaks out against effort to abandon electoral college" 3 March, 2009
- ↑ The Iowa Republican, "Mauro and Fitzgerald – Using Your Tax Dollars to Get Re-Elected" 30 Sept. 2010
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State - 2010 Primary Election Results
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State - 2010 General Election Results
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State - 2006 Primary Election results
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State - 2006 General Election Results
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ' |
Iowa Commissioner of Labor 2011-2019 |
Succeeded by Rod Roberts |
| Preceded by ' |
Iowa Secretary of State 2006-2010 |
Succeeded by Matt Schultz |
| ||||||||||||||
