Jennifer Haase (born December 20, 1974) is an American teacher and politician from the state of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, she was elected to the Michigan State House of Representatives in 2008, representing the 32nd State House District. It includes portions of North and East Macomb County and four rural townships in St. Clair County, and had a history of voting Republican. Prior to her election, Haase worked as an elementary school teacher in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

Biography

Jennifer Haase was born on December 20, 1974, in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

. She graduated from Eisenhower High School, in Shelby Township, Michigan in 1993. She graduated from Alma College in Alma, Michigan with a BA in Elementary Education in 1997. In 1998 she began working as an elementary school teacher in Richmond, where she continued until her election to the State House in 2008. In 2007, Haase completed graduate work, receiving her Masters of Education, Reading and Language Arts from

Oakland University Oakland University is a public research university in Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills, Michigan. Founded in 1957 through a donation of Matilda Dodge Wilson, it was initially known as Michigan State University-Oakland, operating under the Mi ...

. Later that year she became more active in politics, and ran in 2008 for state representative from the 32nd House District of Michigan. Haase worked as an elementary school teacher from 1998 to her election in 2008. She lives in

with her husband Robert Haase, a Sterling Heights firefighter and paramedic.

Political career

In March 2008, Jennifer Haase filed to run for the 32nd State House District of Michigan. The 32nd District is divided between exurban Macomb County and rural St. Clair County. It includes the Macomb County municipalities of Armada,

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, and

Townships, as well as the cities of

, Memphis and New Baltimore. In St. Clair County, the 32nd encompasses

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, and

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Townships. The seat was being vacated by Republican incumbent Daniel J. Acciavatti, who was barred by term limits from running for re-election. Haase was unopposed in the Democratic Primary, while the Republican Primary featured four candidates. Republican John Accavitti won the Republican Primary and faced Haase in the General Election. Although the 32nd was historically safe Republican territory, the strong national Democratic presidential candidates made the race between Haase and Accavitti competitive. Haase defeated Accavitti in what was considered an upset. She won by a 50.4%-46.9% margin. Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

won the District over Republican

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...

by a narrow 49.5%-48.6% margin, and won the presidency. The 32nd District was one of nine seats that Democrats picked up from Republicans in the 2008 election, bringing their margin in the State House to 66-44. Haase took office on January 1, 2009. She sat on the Agriculture, Health Policy, Education, and Ethics and Elections Committees. In midterm elections, Haase lost her re-election bid in 2010 to Republican Andrea LaFontaine.

Electoral history

*2008 campaign for State House **Jennifer Haase (D), 50.4% **John Accavitti (R), 46.9% *2010 campaign for State House **Andrea LaFontaine (R), 16,101 votes **Jennifer Haase (D), 14,354 votes

External links

House Democrats Website Detroit News Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haase, Jennifer 1974 births Living people Democratic Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives Women state legislators in Michigan Alma College alumni Oakland University alumni People from Richmond, Michigan 21st-century American women