Hollis S. French II (born October 11, 1958) is an American
attorney
Attorney may refer to:
* Lawyer
** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions
* Attorney, one who has power of attorney
* ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film
See also
* Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
. He served in the
Alaska Senate
The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or rejecting gub ...
from 2003 to 2015. He was minority leader from January 2014 until he left office. During this time, French authored an unsuccessful bill to strike down the state's same-sex marriage ban. He is a member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
.
He applied for a state judgeship position in July 2015.
French is an attorney and he and his wife own and operate an apartment rental business.
French was appointed to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission by Governor Bill Walker in July 2016.
Early life and education
French moved to Alaska in 1978. He first oil industry job began in 1979 when he was hired as a bullcook on Shell Platform "A" in Cook Inlet. Later, he worked in the Kuparuk Oilfield as a facility and drill site operator for ARCO Alaska while attending the
University of Alaska, Anchorage
The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is a public university in Anchorage, Alaska. UAA also administers four community campuses spread across Southcentral Alaska: Kenai Peninsula College, Kodiak College, Matanuska–Susitna College, and Pr ...
, from which he graduated with a bachelor's degree in English. He attended
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
Law School and graduated with a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
degree.
Before being elected to the state Senate, French was an assistant
district attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...
.
French has climbed
Denali
Denali (; also known as Mount McKinley, its former official name) is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. With a topographic prominence of and a topographic isolation of , Denali is the thir ...
to the summit twice. His father, Bob French, is a county commissioner in
Summit County, Colorado
Summit County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,055. The county seat and largest town is Breckenridge.
Summit County comprises the Breckenridge, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. ...
.
Troopergate
In 2008, French was appointed by the Legislative Council to head an investigation into charges that Governor
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin (; Heath; born February 11, 1964) is an American politician, commentator, author, and reality television personality who served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009. She was the 2008 R ...
"abused her office to get the Alaska public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, fired."
2010 gubernatorial campaign
On July 1, 2009, French announced that he had filed a letter of intent with the Alaska Public Offices Commission to run for
governor of Alaska
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...
. French received 18,018 votes (38.81%), losing the 2010 Democratic primary to former state representative
Ethan Berkowitz
Ethan Avram Berkowitz (born February 4, 1962) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician from Alaska. From 1997 to 2007 he was the Alaska State Representative for District 26, serving as the Democratic Party Minority Leader from 1999 t ...
, who received 22,607 votes (48.69%).
2014 gubernatorial campaign
French initially decided to run again for governor in 2014, but later decided to run instead for
lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
. He won the Democratic nomination.
In September, Byron Mallott, the Democratic nominee for governor, merged his campaign with that of
independent candidate
An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent.
Some politicians have political views th ...
Bill Walker Bill Walker may refer to:
Australian rules football
* Bill A. Walker (1886–1934), Australian rules footballer for Essendon
* Bill Walker (Australian footballer, born 1883) (1883–1971), Australian rules footballer for Fitzroy
* Bill J. V. Wal ...
. While Walker remained the gubernatorial candidate, Mallott ran for lieutenant governor as his
running mate
A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint Ticket (election), ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate ...
. Both French and Walker's original running mate, Craig Fleener, withdrew their candidacies. The Walker-Mallott ticket defeated that of incumbent Republican governor
Sean Parnell
Sean Randall Parnell (born November 19, 1962) is an American attorney and politician. He succeeded Sarah Palin in July 2009 to become the tenth governor of Alaska and served until 2014.Anchorage Mayor
Dan Sullivan Dan, Danny, or Daniel Sullivan may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Daniel J. Sullivan (born 1940), American film and theater director
* Daniel G. Sullivan, American screenwriter
* Dan Sullivan (musician), indie rock musician
* Dan Panic, Amer ...