Jerry Brown is the incumbent Governor of California who took the office on January 3, 2011. Previously, he had been in the same position from 1975 to 1983, Attorney General of California (2007 – 2011), Mayor of Oakland (1999 – 2007), Chair of the California Democratic Party (1989 – 1991) and Secretary of State of California (1971 – 1975).
Early Life and Education
Jerry Brown, or full name Edmund Gerald Brown Jr., was born on 7 April 1938. His father is Edmund Gerald Brown Sr, a former Governor of California, and his mother is Bernice Layne, a former First Lady of California. Jerry Brown grew up with three other siblings in San Francisco, California.
For early education, Brown went the St. Ignatius High School. While at St. Ignatius, he joined California Cadet Corps and remained an active member until his graduation in 1955. Thereafter, Brown moved from college to college: first, he went to Santa Clara University, then to Sacred Heart Novitiate and finally ended up at the University of California, Berkeley. Brown did classics at UCB and entered Yale Law School for a degree in law.
Personal Life
Jerry Brown is married to Anne Gust, who was a senior employee at The Gap. The couple stayed in the relationship for 15 years before marrying on June 18, 2005 at ceremonies in Oakland and Roman Catholic Church of San Francisco.
Career
As a law graduate from one of the world’s finest law schools, Jerry Brown joined Tuttle & Taylor in Los Angeles. He also worked as a law clerk for a Californian Supreme Court judge. Alongside being associated with law, he was continuously inclining towards politics. He made into the Board of Trustees at the Los Angeles Community College Board in 1969. Soon, on 1975, he ascended to the post of Secretary of State of California.
After leaving the office of California Secretary of State, Brown joined 1974 election as a candidate for Governor. On 5 November 1974, Jerry ascended to the post of Governor and assumed the office on 3 January 1983 as a successor of outgoing Governor Ronald Reagan. Soon after gaining the seat, Brown rose as a conservative politician and succeeded a budget surplus of over $5 billion. Likewise, he stayed low profile while at the office – he drove a Plymouth satellite sedan instead of riding a luxurious limousine.
Jerry Brown bade for 1976 presidential election by running for Democrat nomination. Although he was able to win some states such as New Jersey and Rhode Island, Jimmy Carter remained well ahead than any of his competitors. Hence, Brown lost the primaries but won the election to the position of California Governor again. While at the post, Brown gained major publicity for appointing an openly gay judge, Stephen Lachs, and an openly lesbian judge, Mary C. Morgan.
As Jimmy Carter’s tenure came to an end, Brown called for a re-nomination to the 1980 presidential election. Brown came up stronger with his slogan ‘Protect the Earth, serve the people, and explore the universe’. Likewise, he called for a change in health policies, an augmentation in space exploration funds in the pursuit of harvesting solar energy and fund therapy methods of acupuncture and midwifery. Unfortunately, Brown lost the Republican nomination again.
In 1992 Presidential election, Jerry Brown decided to take one more shot at entering the White House. He ran against Democrat Bill Clinton and some other colleagues. Little did he know that he was going to lose again. However, as a matter to be proud of, Brown finished second in the Democrat nomination race and had the best votes won to money raised ratio. With a lot of hostility going on with Clinton, Brown did not endorse him at the DNC.
Losing three presidential elections, Brown was at the lowest point of his political career. Anyway, he didn’t mind running for Mayor of Oakland, California. The city was only housed around 400,000 people, but it was indeed a place to start Brown off again. He remained in the office until January 8, 2007 and joined mainstream California politics as an Attorney General. He won the election to the seat with 56.3% votes in favor.
Having a successful tenure as Attorney General of California, Jerry Brown joined the Governorship of California again on January 3, 2011. Winning the gubernatorial race with 53.8% votes in favor, Brown succeeded Arnold Schwarzenegger. Again, in 2014, Brown won the gubernatorial election to serve the fourth term with 59.2% votes against 40.8% votes for Republican opponent Neel Kashkari. As a Governor, Brown proposed budget cuts to serve state budget deficit of over $15.7 billion. However, he has frequently been accused of not being able to create jobs. He still has few more years at the Governor’s seat.
Donald Trump and Jerry Brown
US President Donald Trump and California Governor are two strong opponents. First thing, because of their political affiliation, they obviously differ on their stands. However, it doesn’t end there – Brown, as a reputed leader, picks on Trump’s various statements. For instance, he once said, “This morning, it’s hard for me to keep my thoughts just on California. We’ve seen the bald assertion of ‘alternative facts,’ whatever those are. We’ve heard the blatant attacks on science. Familiar signposts of our democracy — truth, civility, working together — have been obscured or even swept aside.” Governor Brown is vowing to fight Trump.
