John W. Oxendine (born April 30, 1962) is an
American politician
The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bic ...
who served four terms as Insurance Commissioner of the U.S. state of
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. A member of the
Republican party, he was first elected commissioner in 1994 and was reelected in 1998, 2002, and 2006.
Prior to entering politics, Oxendine owned and operated a small business and was a lawyer practicing in
Gwinnett County, Georgia
Gwinnett County ( ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It forms part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In 2020 United States census, 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the secon ...
.
Oxendine began his career working on several gubernatorial campaigns and was later appointed by Governor
Joe Frank Harris
Joe Frank Harris (born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman and Democratic politician who served as the 78th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1983 to 1991.
Early life and career
Harris was born in the Atco Mill Village o ...
to the State Personnel Board.
On May 20, 2022, Oxendine was indicted by a federal grand jury on felony charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Early life
John Oxendine is one of two sons of Judge James W. Oxendine. His mother is Louise Oxendine. He has one brother, Tim from his father's first marriage. He has two sisters; Cindy Oxendine Sluder from his father's first marriage, and Shirley from his father's second marriage. John has no siblings from his father's third marriage. He grew up in
Tucker, Georgia
Tucker is a city located in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States, located near Atlanta and was originally settled in the 1820s, and later developed as a railroad community in 1892. According to the 2016 United States Census Bureau annual estimate ...
, where he was a Tucker Tiger and graduated from
Tucker High School
Tucker High School is the only public high school in Tucker, a city in DeKalb County, Georgia,
United States. It is operated by the DeKalb County School District. Its student body consists of over 1,800 students from many different cultures.
...
in 1980. Oxendine attributes his keen interest in politics to his father who had been a former Senior Superior Court Judge in Gwinnett County since Oxendine was in school.
He triple majored in Christianity,
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
, and
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
at
Mercer University
Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,000 ...
, earning his Bachelor of Arts with honors in 1984. During college he worked at the
Georgia State Capitol
The Georgia State Capitol is an architecturally and historically significant building in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The building has been named a National Historic Landmark which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As t ...
to pay for his tuition as a student assistant to Governor
George Busbee
George Dekle Busbee Sr. (August 7, 1927 – July 16, 2004), was an American politician who served as the 77th Governor of the State of Georgia from 1975 to 1983, and a senior partner at King & Spalding thereafter.
Early life
Born in Vienna, Geor ...
. Oxendine attended
Walter F. George School of Law
Mercer University School of Law (historically Walter F. George School of Law) is the professional law school of Mercer University. Founded in 1873, it is one of the oldest law schools in the United States; the first law school accredited by the ...
at Mercer, where he continued being active in student organizations including the
Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly known as Lambda Chi, is a college fraternity in North America which was founded at Boston University in 1909. It is one of the largest social fraternities in North America, with more than 300,000 lifetime members a ...
fraternity
A fraternity (from Latin language, Latin ''wiktionary:frater, frater'': "brother (Christian), brother"; whence, "wiktionary:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal ...
, and graduated with his
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 ...
in 1987.
Upon graduation from law school, Oxendine took over the family law practice, Oxendine and Associates, located in Gwinnett County, from his father. Oxendine and Associates concentrated in helping small businesses navigate the bureaucracy required when doing business with the federal government. Oxendine owned and ran this firm until he took the office of Insurance Commissioner in January 1995.
Oxendine was called an "abomination" by a local judge who stated that "If I knew I could suspend you from practicing law in the state of Georgia for the rest of your life I would do so. You’re
nabomination as far as I’m concerned."
Oxendine first married Lee, with whom he had one child. Lee and John
divorced on Oct 26, 1995.
Oxendine later married Ivy Adams, who had also been a student at Mercer in her younger years, and together they have one child. Ivy Adams Oxendine has two children from her prior marriage. He formerly resided in
Peachtree Corners
Peachtree Corners is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area, and is the largest city in Gwinnett County with a population of 42,243 as of the 2020 US Census.
Peachtree Corners is the only ...
, and now resides in Duluth in Gwinnett County.
Political career
Early years
Oxendine began his career as a student assistant to Governor
George Busbee
George Dekle Busbee Sr. (August 7, 1927 – July 16, 2004), was an American politician who served as the 77th Governor of the State of Georgia from 1975 to 1983, and a senior partner at King & Spalding thereafter.
Early life
Born in Vienna, Geor ...
. Oxendine later worked on the campaign staff of
Joe Frank Harris
Joe Frank Harris (born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman and Democratic politician who served as the 78th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1983 to 1991.
Early life and career
Harris was born in the Atco Mill Village o ...
, who was elected Governor and appointed Oxendine as chairman of the State Personnel Board.
Election as insurance commissioner
In the 1994 election, Oxendine opposed incumbent Democratic insurance commissioner
Tim Ryles. After a long, grueling campaign, Oxendine won with 50.98% of the vote.
Potential U.S. Senate candidacies
When
United States Senator
The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
Paul Coverdell
Paul Douglas Coverdell (January 20, 1939 – July 18, 2000) was an American politician who served as a United States senator from Georgia, elected for the first time in 1992 and re-elected in 1998, and director of the Peace Corps from 1989 until ...
died suddenly in 2000, Oxendine was inundated with calls to run for
United States Senator
The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
, but decided against running. Republican leaders later settled on former U.S. Senator
Mack Mattingly
Mack Francis Mattingly (born January 7, 1931) is an American diplomat and politician who served one term as a United States senator from Georgia, the first Republican to have served in the U.S. Senate from that state since Reconstruction.
Early ...
as their consensus Republican candidate; Mattingly was defeated by former Governor
Zell Miller
Zell Bryan Miller (February 24, 1932 – March 23, 2018) was an American author and politician from the state of Georgia. A Democrat, Miller served as lieutenant governor from 1975 to 1991, 79th Governor of Georgia from 1991 to 1999, and as U. ...
.
In early 2003, Miller announced he would not seek reelection to the Senate, prompting Oxendine to again consider running for the seat. On January 8, 2003, Oxendine told the ''
Atlanta Business Chronicle
The ''Atlanta Business Chronicle'' is a weekly newspaper covering business news in Atlanta, Georgia, published by American City Business Journals. The paper has both a weekly print edition and an online edition.
History
The ''Atlanta Business ...
'', "We've had countless people across the state asking us to run for the
.S.Senate, and I told people I was flattered by their faith in me and that I would consider it. I did consider it to the point of commissioning a poll and the results were every encouraging. It turned out I am one of the best-known and -liked politicians in the state." However, when long time friend Congressman
Johnny Isakson
John Hardy Isakson (December 28, 1944 – December 19, 2021) was an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from Georgia from 2005 to 2019 as a member of the Republican Party. He represented in the United State ...
announced his candidacy a month later, Oxendine endorsed Isakson and restated his intention to serve out the remainder of his term as Insurance Commissioner.
2006 campaign for lieutenant governor
In early 2004, Oxendine announced his intent to run for Lieutenant Governor of Georgia and formed an exploratory committee in 2005. He showed his fundraising prowess by raising approximately $500,000 for his campaign in just a couple months. In February 2005, after State Senator
Casey Cagle and Christian political consultant
Ralph Reed
Ralph Eugene Reed Jr. (born June 24, 1961) is an American political consultant and lobbyist, best known as the first executive director of the Christian Coalition of America, Christian Coalition during the early 1990s. He sought the Republican ...
joined the race for Lieutenant Governor, Oxendine later announced that he would run for reelection as Insurance Commissioner.
2006 reelection campaign
In the November election, Oxendine had his largest challenge since being sworn in, a Roy Barnes protégé and Democratic attorney
Guy Drexinger. Oxendine defeated Drexinger by the largest margin in the cycle among those candidates with challengers, taking 65.6 percent of the vote to Drexinger's 34.4 percent. Oxendine carried 153 of
Georgia's 159 counties.
As insurance commissioner
As insurance commissioner, John Oxendine brought reforms to the office, expanding the office hours and creating Georgia's first Telemedicine Program.
Since becoming the first Republican to control a state agency, Oxendine has consistently run the department under budget, keeping the office open eleven hours a day (8:00 a.m. --7:00 pm), and returning money to the taxpayers every year he has been in office.
Oxendine has brought the power of the private sector to bear in addressing Georgia's challenges. He created a public-private partnership to develop a comprehensive telemedicine program in the United States which expanded the availability of healthcare to every Georgia citizen without spending taxpayer dollars.
For his work on behalf of Georgia consumers and health care providers, Oxendine was awarded the American Medical Association's highest honor, the only Insurance Commissioner to receive the David Award.
Mr. Oxendine said the state has a role in making sure auto insurance premiums do not get out of control. Subsequent to his leaving office Georgia experienced increased auto insurance rates, one year the largest increase in the United States.
Oxendine has been criticized for using his emergency blue lights to bypass traffic congestion. He wrecked one agency car while using the emergency lights and siren to bypass traffic for what he claims was an emergency.
Oxendine has since voluntarily given up the emergency lights, though only after being threatened that the privilege would be revoked involuntarily.
2010 gubernatorial campaign
With Governor
Sonny Perdue
George Ervin "Sonny" Perdue III (born December 20, 1946) is an American veterinarian, businessman, politician, and university administrator who served as the 31st United States Secretary of Agriculture from 2017 to 2021. He previously served as t ...
term-limited in 2010, Oxendine filed paperwork to run for the Republican nomination for governor.
Oxendine was criticized for threatening other state politicians to stay out of the race. After being seen as the front-runner in the Republican primary race for much of the campaign, Oxendine placed fourth in the July 20, 2010 primary.
Campaign finance controversies
In May 2009, ''
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger between ...
'' reported that Oxendine had received over $120,000,
["Oxendine returns $120,000 in contributions"]
in campaign contributions from 10 different
political action committees (PACs) in
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
. The newspaper reported all ten PACs donated to Oxendine the maximum $12,000 contribution allowed by law; that the PACs all had similar addresses, and that the money originated from two insurance companies based in Georgia, while state law prohibits companies from giving money to the campaigns of elected officials who regulate them.
[ Once the donations were brought to Oxendine's attention, he immediately returned the funds to their donors awaiting a legal opinion.
Subsequently, ethics complaints were made regarding donations to Oxendine's campaigns to the Georgia Government Transparency & Campaign Finance Commission (formerly known as the State Ethics Commission).] After Oxendine's lawyers argued they were beyond the statute of limitations, some ethics complaints were thrown out by the commission, but on August 21, 2019, the commission began the prosecution process for ethics violations by voting to move forward with a complaint regarding the $120,000 in PACs contributions and with a complaint that Oxendine illegally used remaining $237,000 in donations to Oxendine's failed 2010 gubernatorial race for personal expenses, including spending on a down payment for a house, an athletic club membership, child care expenses, and luxury car leases. Oxendine refuted the complaints as the result of the commission staff ignoring applicable law and fabricating slanderous statements contrary to the facts.[
]
Felony Criminal Indictment
On May 20, 2022, Oxendine was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury on Felony charges of Conspiracy to Commit Health Care Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering. Oxendine is accused in the Felony Criminal Indictment of engaging in a criminal scheme to generate over $2.5 million in fraudulent medical tests and accepting over $600,000.00 in corrupt kickbacks. Oxendine turned himself in for arrest and arraignment on the Felony charges at the Richard Russell Federal Building in Atlanta. If convicted on all counts, Oxendine could face decades in Federal Prison.
Gubernatorial campaign platform
;Second Amendment
Oxendine has publicly stated that he is "a proud Life Member of the National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
, the Georgia Sports Shooting Association, Gun Owners of America
Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a gun rights organization in the United States. It makes efforts to differentiate itself from the larger National Rifle Association (NRA) and has publicly criticized the NRA on multiple occasions for what it consi ...
, and GeorgiaCarry.org". He says that he offers unapologetic, unqualified support of the Second Amendment.
;Abortion rights
Oxendine is anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...
and opposes government funding of elective abortion. He supports parental consent laws for minors who seek an abortion and opposes late term abortions. He has stated that he hopes to put Planned Parenthood
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reve ...
"out of business in Georgia" if elected governor.
;Health care reform
Oxendine opposes a nationalized, government run health care system. He supports medical malpractice reforms as well as tax credits to increase access to insurance. He recently opposed the "high-risk" pool for those with pre-existing conditions in Georgia, leaving the duty of creating said pool up to the federal government, if it is created at all.
;Fair tax
Oxendine has worked with fellow governors to encourage Congress to adopt The Fair Tax He has stated that "The Fair Tax is a cornerstone of my campaign; it is right for America and will help our children by once again making America the greatest manufacturing and economic capitol of the world."
;Water
Oxendine has indicated that he will support efforts to utilize new water reservoirs to ensure an adequate water supply for Georgia.
;Education
Oxendine supports an education model which eliminates process micromanagement at the state level; maintaining local control but ensuring accountability. Oxendine supports an "equal access voucher system" that gives parents greater choice in their children's education. He supports efforts to expand charter schooling.
Electoral history
References
External links
Official John Oxendine campaign website
Georgia Department of Insurance website
New Georgia Encyclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oxendine, John
1962 births
Living people
Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers
Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans
Mercer University alumni
Politicians from Atlanta
Politicians from Nashville, Tennessee
State insurance commissioners of the United States
Tucker High School alumni
People from Tucker, Georgia
21st-century American politicians
American people of Lumbee descent