Madeleine Kunin (née May; born September 28, 1933) is a Swiss-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

diplomat, author and politician. She served as the 77th governor of Vermont from 1985 until 1991, as a member of the

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. She also served as United States Ambassador to Switzerland from 1996 to 1999. She was Vermont's first and, to date, only female governor as well as the first Jewish governor of Vermont. She was also the first Jewish woman to be elected governor of a U.S. state. Kunin is currently a James Marsh Professor-at-Large at the University of Vermont.

Life and career

Kunin was born in Zürich,

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, the daughter of Renee (Bloch) and Ferdinand May. Her family were

German Jew The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

s escaped to Switzerland after the Nazi rise. Kunin's father, Ferdinand May, suffered depression and died by suicide in a lake near Zurich. She moved to the United States as a child. She received her bachelor's degree in history from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (1956), a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, and a master's degree in English from the University of Vermont. Prior to seeking elective office, she worked as a journalist for '' The Burlington Free Press'', as a tour guide at the World's Fair, and as a part-time college professor. She was also involved in community activities, particularly in the area of women's rights, children, and literature. In 2012 her book, ''The New Feminist Agenda: Defining the Next Revolution for Women, Work, and Family'', was published by Chelsea Green Publishing.

Political career

In 1972, Kunin was defeated in her bid to join the Burlington

Board of Aldermen An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

. Later that year she was elected a

Vermont State Representative The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives are ...

, where in her first term she served as a member of the Government Operations Committee. Following her reelection in 1974, she was elected Minority Whip of the State House and appointed to the Appropriations Committee. After being elected to a third term in 1976, she was appointed Chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, the first woman to assume this position. Kunin has written that when she served on the Appropriations Committee during his chairmanship,

Emory A. Hebard Emory A. Hebard (September 28, 1917 – November 1, 1993) was a Vermont businessman and politician who served as Vermont State Treasurer. Early life Emory Amos Hebard was born in Carmel, Maine, on September 28, 1917, and raised in Northampton, ...

, a conservative Republican who later served as Vermont State Treasurer, was a mentor, and gave her significant responsibilities despite her status as a member of the minority Democrats. When Hebard left the House, he successfully lobbied his former colleagues to name Kunin as chairwoman of the committee. In 1978 she was elected to the first of two terms as the 75th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont. Serving with Republican Richard Snelling, Kunin primarily served as President of the State Senate and worked with citizens around the state. She produced various studies in areas such as energy and day care and made policy recommendations to the Governor and Legislature. Kunin was a frequent speaker statewide during her time as lieutenant governor. Kunin did not run for reelection as lieutenant governor in 1982, instead challenging Snelling for the governorship. She was unsuccessful, but in 1984 Snelling did not run for reelection, and Kunin was the successful Democratic nominee, defeating Republican

John J. Easton, Jr. John J. Easton Jr. (born June 16, 1943) is an American attorney who served as Vermont Attorney General and in several senior positions with the United States Department of Energy. Biography John Jay Easton Jr. was born in San Francisco, Californ ...

to win the first of her three terms as governor. In 1986 Kunin ran for her second term as governor. Her opponents were Republican Peter Plympton Smith and independent

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...

. Smith received 38 percent of the vote, Sanders 14 percent, and Kunin won with 47 percent of the vote. She is the first woman in U.S. history to have been elected governor of a U.S. state three times. As governor she focused on the environment, education, and children's issues. She appointed the first woman to the Vermont Supreme Court and created her state's

family court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plaintif ...

system. She declined to seek reelection in 1990. She was a member of the administration of President Bill Clinton, serving as

deputy secretary of education The deputy secretary of education oversees and manages the development of policies in the United States Department of Education. The deputy secretary focuses primarily on K–12 education policy, such as No Child Left Behind, the High School Initi ...

of the United States from 1993 until 1997, when she became the ambassador to her native Switzerland, as well as to Liechtenstein. Prior to joining the Clinton Administration she worked in Clinton's campaign as a member of the search committee for the vice presidential nominee and on the transition team. Switzerland-United States relations entered a tense phase during the World Jewish Congress lawsuit against Swiss banks starting in 1995. The American government supported the heirs of the Holocaust victims and the Swiss had to re-evaluate the role of

Switzerland during World War II During World War I and World War II, Switzerland maintained armed neutrality, and was not invaded by its neighbors, in part because of its topography, much of which is mountainous. Germany was a threat and Switzerland built a powerful defense. I ...

. One of the steps taken was the publication of the names of the owners of dormant accounts in Swiss banks, with the surprise result that Renee May, Kunin's mother deceased in 1970 was among the names.

Personal life

Kunin is the author of the books ''Coming of Age: My Journey to the Eighties'' (2018), ''The New Feminist Agenda: Defining the Next Revolution for Women, Work, and Family'' (2012), '' Pearls, Politics, and Power: How Women Can Win and Lead'' (2008) and ''Living a Political Life'' (1995) which chronicles her career prior to joining the U.S. Department of Education. She is a resident of

Burlington, Vermont Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...

. Kunin is the mother of four children. She divorced her first husband, the academic Arthur Kunin, in 1995. She married John W. Hennessey Jr, a professor at Dartmouth College, in 2006. Kunin was the sister of the late Edgar May, who was a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

–winning journalist and a member of both the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...

and Vermont State Senate.

Awards and honors

Governor Kunin has received more than twenty honorary degrees. In 1995, Kunin received the Foreign Language Advocacy Award from the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages in recognition of her support for education, equal access for all children and equitable salaries for teachers.

References

External links

*
Video clip of Kunin documentary

Madeleine May Kunin
at the

Jewish Women's Archive The Jewish Women's Archive (JWA) is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to document "Jewish women's stories, elevate their voices, and inspire them to be agents of change." JWA was founded by Gail Twersky Reimer in 1995 in Brookli ...