Category: Lieutenant Governor / page 5

Elizabeth Roberts
Elizabeth H Roberts


Elizabeth Roberts was the first female elected lieutenant governor of Rhode Island, serving from 2007 to 2015. Born in Washington, D.C., Roberts attended Brown University and graduated with a degree in human biology in 1978. Following college, Roberts completed her MBA in health care management at Boston University in 1984. From 1997 until 2007, Roberts served in the Rhode Island State Senate. As a state senator, Roberts worked to make insurance affordable for small business. In 2004, Roberts created the Office of Health Insurance Commissioner to oversee insurance companies and […]
Evelyn Sanquinetti
Evelyn Sanquinetti


Evelyn Sanquinetti assumed office as lieutenant governor of Illinois in January 2015 until 2019. She is the first Hispanic lieutenant governor of Illinois and the first female Hispanic lieutenant governor in the United States. Sanquinetti was born in Miami, Florida. She graduated from Florida International University with a bachelor's degree in piano performance. She then attended The John Marshall Law School in Illinois, where she graduated with a juris doctor. After completing her law degree, Sanquinetti worked in the Illinois Attorney General's office and then as a lawyer and an […]
Sheila Simon
Sheila Simon


Sheila Simon was Illinois's 46th lieutenant governor, serving from 2011 to 2015. She was the 2016 Democratic nominee for the Illinois Senate seat being vacated by the retiring David Luechtefeld, but lost in the general election. Simon was born March 13, 1961. She is the daughter of former U.S. Senator Paul Simon. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wittenberg University in 1983 and graduated from Georgetown Law School with a Juris Doctorate in 1987. Following her graduation from Georgetown, Simon worked at Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, […]
Becky Skillman
Becky S Skillman


Rebecca "Becky" Skillman, the first elected female lieutenant governor of Indiana, assumed office in January 2005 and served until 2013. A native to Bedford, Indiana, Skillman was born September 26, 1950. Following her graduation from Indiana University, Skillman was elected Lawrence County recorder in 1977. In 1984, Skillman became the county clerk, a position she held until 1992. Prior to holding office as lieutenant governor, Skillman was elected to serve in the Indiana Senate (1992 to 2004). While holding a senate seat, Skillman became the first woman elected to senate […]
Tina Smith
Tina Smith


Tina Smith assumed office as the junior United States senator from Minnesota on Jan. 2, 2018, following the resignation of Senator Al Franken. Previously, Smith served as Minnesota's lieutenant governor from 2015 to 2018. On November 6, 2018, Smith won the special election to complete the remainder of Franken's Senate term, and on November 3, 2020, she won the election for a full term. Smith was born in New Mexico on March 4, 1958. She graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in political science and earned an MBA […]
Jane Swift
Jane Swift


Jane Swift was the acting governor of Massachusetts from 2001-2003, while also serving as lieutenant governor. She was the youngest female governor or acting governor in U.S. history. Swift was born in North Adams, Massachusetts, on February 24, 1965. In 1987, she graduated from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, with a bachelor's degree in American studies. Swift began her political career at age 25 when she was elected to the Massachusetts Senate, serving from 1991-1997. In 1996, she was the Republican nominee for U.S. Congress in Massachusetts' 1st congressional district […]
Mary Taylor
Mary Taylor


Mary Taylor was Ohio's 65th lieutenant governor from 2011 to 2019. As lieutenant governor, Taylor was named to lead CSI Ohio—the "Common Sense Initiative"—to reform Ohio's regulatory policies, as well as to serve as the director of the Ohio Department of Insurance. She resigned as Insurance Director on March 31, 2017. An Ohio native, Taylor received a bachelor's degree in accounting and a master's degree in taxation from the University of Akron. In 1990, she began her career at Deloitte and Touche, an accounting firm. In 1994, she joined the […]
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend


The eldest child of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend served two terms as Maryland's lieutenant governor from 1995 to 2003. She narrowly lost a bid to become Maryland's first woman governor in 2002. Born in Greenwich, Connecticut, on July 4, 1951, she is a cum laude graduate of Harvard University and a graduate of the University of New Mexico Law School. Before becoming lieutenant governor, Townsend served as deputy assistant attorney general in the U.S. Department of Justice, during which time she worked to establish community-policing programs across […]
Olene Walker
Olene Walker


Olene Walker served as Utah’s governor from November 2003 to January 2005, the state's first female governor. Walker was born in Ogden, Utah, on November 15, 1930. She received her bachelor’s degree in political science from Brigham Young University in 1953, her master’s degree in political science from Stanford University in 1954, and her doctorate in education administration from the University of Utah in 1981. From 1970-1973, Walker was an education consultant for the U.S. Department of Education and from 1974-1979, she was director of the Salt Lake City School […]
Nancy Wyman
Nancy Wyman


Nancy Wyman served as Connecticut's lieutenant governor from 2011-2019. She was also chairwoman of the Connecticut Democratic Party from 2019-2020 Born April 21, 1946, Wyman grew up in Brooklyn, New York. She earned an associate's degree in radiological technology from Long Island College Hospital. Prior to being elected lieutenant governor, Wyman served on the Tolland Board of Education from 1979 to 1987, serving as vice president for four years. In 1987, she was elected to the Connecticut State House of Representatives, representing the 53rd District until 1995. As a representative, […]