Michael John Lamoureux (born June 2, 1976) is a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

lobbyist In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

, and former

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

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 ...

from Russellville,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. He served in the

Arkansas General Assembly The General Assembly of Arkansas is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house Arkansas Senate with 35 members, and the lower Arkansas House of Representatives with 100 ...

for over ten years before resigning to serve as

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

Governor 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 ...

Asa Hutchinson William Asa Hutchinson II (, '' AY-sə''; born December 3, 1950) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who is the 46th and current governor of Arkansas. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. attorney for the Fort Smit ...

. In 2016, Lamoureux resigned and joined a lobbying firm.

Early life and career

Lamoureux was born in

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

and later moved to

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

in Pope County and then the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Russellville. While a senior at Dover High School and attending

Arkansas Tech University Arkansas Tech University (ATU) is a public university in Russellville, Arkansas. The university offers programs at both baccalaureate and graduate levels in a range of fields. The Arkansas Tech University–Ozark Campus, a two-year satellite ca ...

, he dreamed of winning election to public office. He later attended

William H. Bowen School of Law The UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law is a public law school, part of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock). The school is both American Bar Association (ABA) accredited and a member of the Association of American ...

at the

University of Arkansas at Little Rock The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock) is a public research university in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established as Little Rock Junior College by the Little Rock School District in 1927, the institution became a private four-year ...

. Lamoureux worked part-time as a lawyer for the

Arkansas Public Defender Commission Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from ...

Electoral history

Arkansas House of Representatives

Lamoureux won election to the

Arkansas House of Representatives The Arkansas State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Arkansas General Assembly, the state legislature of the US state of Arkansas. The House is composed of 100 members elected from an equal amount of constituencies across the ...

in November 2002, and was seated in the 84th Arkansas General Assembly at age 26. He served in the House and won re-election twice until declining to seek reelection in the November 2008 election. Throughout his time in the House, Lamoureux was part of the Republican minority, though the party was slowly gaining seats each cycle, and Republican

Governor of Arkansas 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 ...

Mike Huckabee Michael Dale Huckabee (born August 24, 1955) is an American politician, Baptist minister, and political commentator who served as the 44th governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate for the Republican Party presidential nomina ...

was

term limit A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...

ed out on January 9, 2007.

2009 Arkansas Senate (Special)

Russellville Republican Sharon Trusty resigned from her

Arkansas Senate The Arkansas State Senate is the upper branch of the Arkansas General Assembly. The Senate consists of 35 members, each representing a district with about 83,000 people. Service in the state legislature is part-time, and many state senators have ...

District 4 seat on September 1, 2009, citing family needs, leading to a special election. Lamoureux had previously campaigned for Trusty in 1996, and sought the seat in the special election. On December 16, 2009, Lamoureux won the

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...

to fill the District 4 seat. In a low-turnout contest, he polled 2,955 votes (70.1 percent); the

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 ...

John Burnett trailed with 899 votes (21.3 percent). The remaining 8.6 percent of the ballots went to the

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

Tachany Evans. In 2011, Senator Lamoureux introduced a bill to double

vehicle title In the United States, the certificate of title for a vehicle (also known as a car title, automobile title, or pink slip) is a legal form, establishing a person or business as the legal owner of a vehicle. Vehicle titles in the U.S. are commonly is ...

fees.

2012 Arkansas Senate

Lamoureux won re-election to a full Senate term in November 2012 without opposition in the Republican primary or the general election. Following the November 2012 elections, Lamoureux was nominated by fellow senators to be the

President Pro Tempore of the Senate A president pro tempore or speaker pro tempore is a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer. The phrase ''pro tempore'' is Latin "for the time being". ...

in ahead of the 89th Arkansas General Assembly. Now in the majority for the first time since the

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloo ...

, the Republican met frequently with Democratic Governor

Mike Beebe Mickey Dale Beebe ( ; born December 28, 1946) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 45th governor of Arkansas from 2007 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Born in Amagon, Arkansas, Beebe is a graduate of Arkansa ...

. He has been a member of the board of directors of the

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

interest group Advocacy groups, also known as interest groups, special interest groups, lobbying groups or pressure groups use various forms of advocacy in order to influence public opinion and ultimately policy. They play an important role in the developm ...

, the

American Legislative Exchange Council The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a nonprofit organization of conservative state legislators and private sector representatives who draft and share model legislation for distribution among state governments in the United State ...

. Arkansas Senate
District 16 (Newton and Pope counties and parts of Boone, Carroll and Van Buren counties)

Hutchinson administration

Lamoureux stepped down from the

on November 14, 2014 to lead the transition team for the incoming governor

's administration, and ultimately become his chief of staff. The appointment had been expected by insiders and was praised by legislators from both parties. A special election was called to fill the District 16 seat, ultimately won by Greg Standridge. He resigned from the governor's office May 31, 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lamoureux, Michael 1976 births Living people Republican Party Arkansas state senators Republican Party members of the Arkansas House of Representatives Arkansas lawyers Politicians from Springfield, Missouri People from Russellville, Arkansas People from Pope County, Arkansas Arkansas Tech University alumni William H. Bowen School of Law alumni