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Denise Juneau
Denise Juneau is a former Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction. Juneau, a Democrat, was elected in 2008. She won re-election in 2012.[1] She was ineligible to seek a third term in 2016 due to term limits.
Juneau was a 2016 Democratic candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the At-Large Congressional District of Montana. She was defeated in the general election.[2]
A January 2013 article in Governing named Juneau as one of the top state Democratic officials to watch in 2013.[3]
Biography
Juneau worked as a teacher on the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota and at Browning High School. An attorney by profession, she also served as court clerk to Montana Supreme Court Justices Jim Regnier and Brian Morris, and served as Director of Indian Education in the Montana Office of Public Instruction. She is a member of the Mandan and Hidatsa tribes.[4]
Education
- J.D., University of Montana-Missoula (2004)
- MEd, Harvard Graduate School of Education (1994)
- B.A., English, Montana State University-Bozeman (1993)
Political career
Superintendent of Public Instruction (2009-2017)
Juneau won election as Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction on November 4, 2008, becoming the first Native American woman elected to a statewide position. She was re-elected in 2012 but did not seek re-election in 2016 due to term limits. She was a 2016 Democratic candidate for the U.S. House to represent the At-Large Congressional District of Montana, but was defeated in the general election.[2][5]
Elections
2016
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Ryan Zinke (R) defeated Denise Juneau (D) and Rick Breckenridge (L) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent in June.[6]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Ryan Zinke Incumbent |
56.2% | 285,358 | |
| Democratic | Denise Juneau | 40.5% | 205,919 | |
| Libertarian | Rick Breckenridge | 3.3% | 16,554 | |
| Total Votes | 507,831 | |||
| Source: Montana Secretary of State | ||||
Juneau was one of the initial members of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Emerging Races. Emerging Races is the second tier of the Red to Blue program. According to the DCCC, it includes the districts "where campaigns are on track and working hard to put seats in play."[7][7]
U.S. Senate, 2014
Juneau had been mentioned as a possible contender for the U.S. Senate seat held by retiring Democratic U.S. Senator Max Baucus.[8] However, in August, 2013, she announced that she would not seek Senator Baucus' seat.[9]
2012
Juneau won re-election as Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2012.[10] She was unopposed in the June 5 Democratic primary and faced Republican Sandy Welch in the general election on November 6, 2012. With 100% of unofficial results in, Juneau claimed victory, but Welch did not concede and ultimately filed for a recount on December 3.[11][12][13] However, after it was ordered by a judge, Welch abandoned the recount due to the cost.[14]
| Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Denise Juneau Incumbent |
50.2% | 235,397 | |
| Republican | Sandy Welch | 49.8% | 233,166 | |
| Total Votes | 468,563 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State | ||||
| Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
| Denise Juneau |
100% | 82,788 | ||
| Total Votes | 82,788 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State. | ||||
Issue positions
Dropout rate
Juneau said she is committed to reducing Montana's school dropout rate, supports anti-bullying measures, and seeks to assist struggling schools.[15] Juneau launched the site Graduation Matters Montana in order to work towards increasing the graduation rate statewide.[16]
2008
Juneau won election on November 4, 2008. She defeated Republican Elaine Sollie Herman and Libertarian Donald Eisenmenger.[17]
| Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction, 2008 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Denise Juneau |
51% | 234,843 | |
| Republican | Elaine Sollie Herman | 43.7% | 201,091 | |
| Libertarian | Donald Eisenmenger | 5.3% | 24,236 | |
| Total Votes | 460,170 | |||
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 "Denise + Juneau + Montana + Education"
See also
| Montana | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
- Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction
- Superintendent of Schools
- Montana school districts
- Montana Department of Education
- United States House of Representatives
- Montana's At-Large Congressional District election, 2016
- Montana's At-Large Congressional District
External links
- Montana Office of Public Instruction
- Campaign website
- Facebook page
- Denise Juneau on Twitter
- Campaign contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008
Footnotes
- ↑ Denise Juneau campaign website, "Meet Denise," accessed November 15, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Billings Gazette, "Denise Juneau launches campaign for Montana's U.S. House seat," November 5, 2015
- ↑ Governing, "State Democratic Officials to Watch in 2013," accessed January 25, 2013
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Denise Juneau - biography," accessed December 24, 2011
- ↑ Montana Office of Public Instruction, "Biography of the Denise Juneau," accessed December 24, 2011
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "2016 Candidate Filing List: Non-Legislative," accessed March 15, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 DCCC, "DCCC Chairman Luján Announces First 31 Districts In Red To Blue Program," February 11, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Brian Schweitzer move aids GOP in battle for Senate," July 13,2013
- ↑ Media Trackers, "Top Montana Education Official Denise Juneau Passes on Senate Race," accessed July 22, 2015
- ↑ Billings Gazette, "Many Montanans scoping out 2012 political races," June 12, 2011
- ↑ Great Falls Tribune, "Juneau unofficial winner; Welch not conceding defeat in close OPI race," November 14, 2012
- ↑ KXLH, "Welch will ask for recount in OPI race against Juneau," November 9, 2012
- ↑ Daily Inter Lake, "Candidate files request for recount in court," December 3, 2012
- ↑ Missoulian, "Welch drops request for recount in school superintendent race," December 11, 2012
- ↑ Char-Koosta News, "Denise Juneau hits the campaign trail for re-election," August 16, 2012
- ↑ Graduation Matters Montana, "About," accessed August 21, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "November 4, 2008 general election results," accessed December 17, 2011
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Linda McCulloch (D) |
Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction 2009–2017 |
Succeeded by Elsie Arntzen (R) |
| ||||||||||||||
