Jonathan Newman is an American businessman, lawyer, and former Chairman of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. He is currently the chief executive of Newman Wines & Spirits, a wine brokerage he founded in 2008.

Early life and education

Newman was raised in

Penn Valley, Pennsylvania Penn Valley is an unincorporated community located within Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn Valley residents share a zip code with Merion, Narberth, or Wynnewood because the town does not have its own post office. However, ...

. He graduated from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

and earned his J.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Career

After law school, Newman began working for the law firm Obermayer, Rebmann, Maxwell & Hippel. Newman has a passion for horses and bought his first racehorse at the age of 29 for $47,000. He raced the horse nine times and won $120,000 in purses before selling the horse for $400,000. He would later serve as the Chairman for the Pennsylvania Harness Racing Commission where he limited the use of whips in

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

. He entered politics in 1998 at the age of 35 when he challenged

Jon D. Fox Jon D. Fox (April 22, 1947 – February 11, 2018) was an American Republican politician. He served as a member of Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1985 to 1992 before being elected to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners (1992- ...

for his seat on the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

, losing in a four-way primary. He was approached in 1999 about joining the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. Newman was appointed to the board by Tom Ridge in 2000. He served on the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board for over seven years and became Chairman in August 2002. He spent the first two years of his appointment learning about the state liquor system and wine. During his time with the Board he implemented programs that helped Pennsylvania become a world-class purveyor in wines, including Sunday sales, wine festivals, and premium collection state stores. One of the most known programs was the "Chairman's Selection" where he used the state's purchasing power to buy premium wines that were sold to the public at discount prices. In 2003 he was named Man of the Year by Wine Enthusiast Magazine for his work at the board. He left the Liquor Control Board in 2007 and founded Newman Wines & Spirits. The company purchases quality wines at a savings and sells them to retailers who pass the savings to customers.

References

External links

Newman Wines & Spirits website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newman, Jonathan Living people University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni Year of birth missing (living people)