Jimmy Kennedy
From Usgovsimulation
| ||||
| 5th Governor of the Midwest | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In Office: 2019 - Present Lt. Governor: Joan Calhoon | ||||
| Preceded by | John Houston | |||
| Succeeded by | Incumbent | |||
| Junior Senator from the Wabash Valley | ||||
| In Office: 2017 - 2019 Served with Lincoln Winters | ||||
| Preceded by | Angelina Stamford | |||
| Succeeded by | Charles Porter | |||
| 2nd Governor of the Midwest | ||||
| In Office: 2013 - 2017 Lt. Governor: L. Winters, A. Exley | ||||
| Preceded by | Thomas Allum | |||
| Succeeded by | Angelina Stamford | |||
| Senior Senator from the Wabash Valley | ||||
| In Office: 2011 - 2013 Served with George Jameson | ||||
| Preceded by | Regionalization | |||
| Succeeded by | David Vithoulkas | |||
| 70th Speaker of the Illinois General Assembly | ||||
| In Office: 2007 - 2011 | ||||
| Preceded by | Mike Madigan (D) | |||
| Succeeded by | Regionalization | |||
| Born | 20 April, 1978 New York City, New York | |||
| Political Party | Democrat | |||
| Spouse | Chelsea Sink (1997 - 2001) Lilya Kennedy (2012 - Present) | |||
| Children | Alexandra Sink-Kennedy Jeffrey S. Kennedy Abigail Lilya Kennedy | |||
| Profession | University Teacher | |||
| Religion | Roman Catholic | |||
James F. Kennedy is the 5th and current Governor of the Midwest, having served previously in the same office he now holds, from 2013 to 2017; and as U.S. Senator for the Wabash Valley and Chairman of the Senate Government Regulations and Commerce Committee from 2011 to 2013, and from 2017 to 2019. Additionally, he was the 2016 Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee.
Prior to his regionalization, Kennedy served as the 70th Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives and as the 38th Illinois Secretary of State. He has the honor of having succeeded three long-time Illinois DNC Party icons: Mike Madigan as House Speaker, Jesse White as Secretary, and Dick Durbin as Senator.
Early Life
James Ferrer Kennedy was born in 1978 in New York City, New York, to Andrew Kennedy and Argentinian immigrant María Ferrer. The following year, the family moved to Ohio.
Coming from a family of lawyers, he was educated in a good public school of Cleveland. He'd become a very good student, getting a scholarship to study at Harvard University in 1996. In 2000, following the completetion of his Political Science degree, James moved to Chicago, Illinois, to teach History at the Illinois University.
Political Beginnings
In early 2000, James found himself having political aspirations, and decided to fill in the papers to run for Attorney General. Unknown among Illinois citizens, he began to campaign through every county to listen to voters and get his message through. However, this wasn't enough to win the nomination to the much more known Lisa Madigan. In his concession speech endorsing the future Attorney General, Kennedy was able to deliver a message that would gain him much support among the Chicago base, thus already preparing for his political future.
Illinois Legislator
In 2001 he'd run for IL House of Representatives, defeating popular two term-incumbent Tom Cross in a close recount in which Kennedy got just 19 votes more than his opponent. Despite being a freshman, he was already trusted many leadership duties and became a prominent member of the House Democratic Caucus. He was seen as a potential candidate for State House Majority Leader, Governor in 2003 and Senate in 2004, but declined to run every time. He continued pushing forward legislation which improved Illinois in many ways.
Secretary of State
In 2006, with the retirement of IL Secretary of State Jesse White, and former Republican Leader Tom Cross announcing his intentions to run for his seat, the Democratic Party found itself in need to find a candidate that would be able to succesfully challenge Cross. Despite his bad relations with Governor Blagojevich, the man who asked him to run, Kennedy accepted, and narrowly defeated Cross again by just 635 votes, becoming the 38th Secretary of State. His tenure in this office, however, wouldn't last for too long.
Return to the State Legislature: Speaker
Just 10 months later, Speaker Mike Madigan (D) announced his resignment and retirement from politics. Kennedy would have been interested to run for the leadership position had he been in the House, but denied intentions to run for Madigan's House seat (and later Speaker seat once in the House) due to his commitment to his recently elected office.
However, IL Democratic Party leaders, such as former Chicago Mayor George Jameson (who would later become his Junior Senate Partner) and Senator Barack Obama endorsed him to succeed Madigan, seeing him as the best possible replacement. After many drafts being launched, Kennedy accepted. He won in a landslide and was elected Speaker of the State Congress.
As Speaker, Kennedy fought for progressive agenda, most remarkably passing an outlaw of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing and in the workplace and an environmental-friendly energy plan. He served from 2007 to 2011, when he succesfully ran for Senator.
Senator of the Wabash Valley
After narrowly defeating Congressman David Vithoulkas, and Vice President Hayes being confirmed by the outgoing Senate, Senator-elect Kennedy unsuccesfully run for the President Pro Tempore seat in the friendly (and close) Senate Democratic Leadership Elections. Dmitri Kowalchuk of Florida was confirmed instead.
Later on, Senate Majority Leader Esther Cullen (D-KY) decided to trust Kennedy the powerful GRAC committee gavel. He's been the most active Chairman, passing over 20 bills in the first weeks, and having held the important Auto Crisis hearings.
In 2012, with the removal from office of both Senator Morgenthau (D-WA) and Governor Flint (D-WA) and the elevation of Lt. Governor Morrison (R-ID), followed by the appointment of Senator Karcin (R-OR), the Senate changed hands and went to the Republicans. Due to this, Kennedy lost his gavel, but retained control of the GRAC DNC Leadership.
In an interview with Red Blanchard in "The Red Zone", Senator Kennedy announced he'd challenge Governor Allum in the 2012 Elections instead of running for re-election. Early polls showed a dead heat tie with Kennedy taking Michigan and Illinois and Allum taking Indiana, Wisconsin and Minnesota. As the race continued, polls continued calling the race too close to call. After Governor Allum dropped out on the last week of campaigning for unknown reasons, Kennedy was officially elected.
Governor of the Midwest
Jimmy Kennedy was inaugurated the 13th January, 2013 as the 2nd Governor of the Midwest, 1st Democrat, and 1st Hispanic American in the whole nation since regionalization.
First Session (2013 - 2014)
With a strong majority of 55 seats in the Midwest General Assembly, Governor Kennedy focused on pushing forward many of his 2012 promises on social programs, as well as his eco-friendly agenda. As the session progressed, he managed to turn a 12 billion budget deficit into a 4 billion surplus with the support of the Minority Leader and the whole Assembly. Together with the budget, his economy recovery plan, which would help workers with job training and give tax benefits for new Midwest industries, got passed and signed into law.
In 2014, he finally completed the formation of his cabinet, which was labeled as competent, capable, and bipartisan by analysts, and earned him a big amount of praise. He soon became the region's most popular official according to most polls, and was chosen by his Democratic colleges in the NGA to co-chair the national organization with Republican Governor Pizzuto of Pennsylvania. Under him, the Assembly has introduced and debated over 40 bills, surpassing the Allum years; and unlike his predecessor, he's not found himself in disagreement with the Legislature too often, using the Veto Pen only once.
Second Session (2015 - 2016)
Vice Presidential Candidate
In 2016, James Kennedy was selected by Senate Majority Leader Jackson Rockefeller to be his running mate against Republican Governors Pizzuto and Pooty. On November, the two Democrats were narrowly defeated due to extremely close loses in Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and California. However, the duo did capture the entire Midwest, homeregion of Kennedy, together with the states of Missouri and Iowa, in which the Illinoisian frequently campaigned. With his term as Governor expiring, Kennedy retired back to status as private citizen.
Appointment to the U.S. Senate
After a few weeks retired from politics, Kennedy returned to public service, accepting her succesor in the Governor Mansion, Angelina Rockefeller's offer, to replace her in the Senate. Upon entering Congress, he was awarded the Chairmanship of the GRAC Committee, replacing Edward Wyatt, who had been elected President Pro Tempore. Through this two appointments, he returned 4 years later to the two seats he held from 2011 to 2013. His session was succesful, with his committee being called a "model for the whole Congress" thanks to it's bipartisanship.
Back to the Governor's Mansion
In 2018, with Angelina Rockefeller resigning as Governor, and the elevation of Republican Lt. Governor John Houston, Jimmy was once again encouraged by friends and family to run, this time to return to the Mansion. He defeated John Houston on Election Day, taking all five states and over 54% of the votes.
He returned to Springfield with a 54-47 Democratic Majority, and with his friend, Jaime Elzar-Toledo, as Democratic Majority Leader.
Personal Life
Kennedy met his first wife, prosecutor Chelsea Sink, in 1995, and married her in 1997. That same year, their first son Jeffrey was born, and later, in 2000, they adopted a Chinese 9-year old girl, Alexandra. Chelsea died in a plain crash in 2001, while campaigning for her husband.
In 2012, James met Lilya Richards, and after dating her for a few months, they decided to marry. Their first child, Abigail, was born in 2013. In 2019, Lilly, encouraged by her husband, succesfully ran for Congress.
Opinion Polls
As Senator (2011 - 2013)
2012
51% - Approve
38% - Disapprove
11% - Unsure/No Opinion
The Senator's fairly popular in his home region, but he's been unable to shake the prevailing opinion that he's been running a campaign since the day he was elected to office. Overly involved in the regional legislature, there's never been any mystery that the Senator's got his eyes on the Governor's Mansion.
As Governor (2013 - 2017)
2013
55% - Approve
39% - Disapprove
6% - Unsure/No Opinion
The new Governor's been fairly successful since taking office, passing a large chunk of his agenda through the legislature while the Republicans were still floundering, looking for an effective leader.
2014
57% - Approve
33% - Disapprove
10% - Unsure/No Opinion
The Governor has made significant inroads into the independent vote thanks to his readiness to compromise on any contentious issue -- even the ones he has more than enough votes in the legislature to win anyways. Some liberals fear he's moving away from their values somewhat in order to fuel his re-election, but it's tough to criticize a governor who gets results this effortlessly.
2016
61%- Approve
31%- Disapprove
8% - Unsure/No Opinion
Since taking office, Kennedy has made a kinder, gentler governor than he ever was as a Senator or campaigner. A prolific author of legislation, he's passed even more flagship agenda items this session and has demonstrated both a willingness and a capacity for compromise, endearing independents to his cause. He's seemingly done very little for any election opponent -- or Minority Leader -- to criticize with much traction.
Election Results
| Election | Location | Election | Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor Election, 2018 | Midwest | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 7,853,336 | 54.16% | John Houston | Republican | 6,558,462 | 45.23% | Others | Independent | 88,452 | 0.61% | |||
| Presidential Election, 2016 | United States | General | Rockefeller/Kennedy | Democrat | 263 | - | Pizzuto/Pooty | Republican | 275 | - | Others | Independent | 0 | - | |||
| Governor Election, 2012 | Midwest Region | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 10,624,333 | 73.27% | Thomas Allum | Republican | 3,858,517 | 26.61% | Others | Independent | 17,401 | 0.12% | |||
| U.S. Senate Election, 2010 | Wabash Valley | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 4,485,600 | 50.40% | David Vithoulkas | Republican | 4,378,800 | 49.20% | Daniel Mallory | Independent | 35,600 | 0.40% | |||
| Assemblyman, 2007 | Illinois, 22nd District | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 145,781 | 67.81% | Wallace Matteson | Republican | 69,079 | 32.13% | Others | Independent | 128 | 0.06% | |||
| Secretary of State, 2006 | Illinois | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 676,798 | 45.12% | Tom Cross | Republican | 676,163 | 45.08% | Others | Independent | 147,039 | 9.8% | |||
| Assemblyman, 2003 | Illinois, 84th District | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 55,871 | 53.21% | Larry Ehmen | Republican | 49,015 | 46.68% | Others | Independent | 116 | 0.11% | |||
| Assemblyman, 2001 | Illinois, 84th District | General | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 47,433 | 49.93% | Tom Cross | Republican | 47,414 | 49.91% | Others | Independent | 149 | 0.16% | |||
| Attorney General, 2000 | Illinois | Democratic Primaries | Jimmy Kennedy | Democrat | 360,747 | 24.05% | Lisa Madigan | Democrat | 836,198 | 55.78% | Others | Democrat | 303,050 | 20.17% |
Political Succession
| Preceded by John Houston | Governor of the Midwest 2019-Present | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Angelina Rockefeller | Wabash Valley Senator (Class III) 2017-2019 | Succeeded by Charles Porter |
| Preceded by Thomas Allum | Governor of the Midwest 2013-2017 | Succeeded by Angelina Rockefeller |
| Preceded by Regionalization | Wabash Valley Senator (Class III) 2011-2013 | Succeeded by David Vithoulkas |
