Jennette B. Bradley (born October 2, 1952) is an

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 ...

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 ...

of the

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 ...

party and served as the 62nd

lieutenant governor of Ohio The position of lieutenant governor of Ohio was established in 1852. The lieutenant governor becomes governor if the governor resigns, dies in office or is removed by impeachment. Before 1852, the president of the Ohio State Senate would serve as ...

from 2003 to 2005 and

Ohio State Treasurer The treasurer of the U.S. state of Ohio is responsible for collecting and safeguarding taxes and fees, as well as managing state investments. The Treasury was located in the Ohio Statehouse from 1861 to 1974, when it was moved to the Rhodes Stat ...

from 2005 to 2007. Bradley was the first African American elected to statewide office in Ohio.

Early life and education

Bradley was born in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. Her family settled in a neighborhood on Columbus' east side after her father retired from the

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. After graduating from East High School in 1970, Bradley attended

Wittenberg University Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. ...

Springfield, Ohio Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County, Ohio, Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River (Ohio), Mad River, Buck Creek, and Beaver Creek, approxim ...

and earned a degree in psychology.

Early professional career

Bradley took a job with the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority. She became the first black woman to serve as the executive director of the Authority when she was 28 years old. In 1986, Bradley moved to Washington, D.C. She returned to Columbus in 1989 and worked as a senior executive for

Huntington National Bank Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is an American bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is ranked 521st on the Fortune 500, and is 26th on the list of largest banks in the United States. The company's banking s ...

Columbus City Council

Bradley entered the 1991 Columbus City Council race as a

candidate. She was reelected in 1995 and 1999. During her tenure she was chair of City Council's Recreation and Parks and Public Utilities committees. She resigned from the council when she became Lieutenant Governor in 2003.

Lieutenant governor

In 2002 Governor Bob Taft announced he had chosen Bradley to replace

Maureen O'Connor Maureen O'Connor (born August 7, 1951) is an American lawyer and judge serving as the chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court. She was elected to the court in 2002, becoming chief justice in 2010. Prior to this, O'Connor served as an associate ...

as his running mate. Many conservatives did not support Bradley because she was

pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pr ...

. Critics of the Taft-Bradley ticket were also concerned about her City Council vote to extend city workers' health care benefits to include domestic partners and

same-sex couples A same-sex relationship is a romantic or sexual relationship between people of the same sex. ''Same-sex marriage'' refers to the institutionalized recognition of such relationships in the form of a marriage; civil unions may exist in countries ...

. Bradley was then criticized for having later voted against this legislation. Taft and Bradley won the race with approximately 58% of the vote. Bradley became the third female lieutenant governor of Ohio and the first African-American woman elected to the office. She also became the first black female lieutenant governor of any U.S. state. After taking office, Bradley was appointed by Taft to head the

Ohio Department of Commerce The Ohio Department of Commerce is the administrative department of the Ohio state government Ohio Rev. Code § 121.01 ''et seq.'' responsible for regulating banks and savings institutions, credit unions, mortgage lenders and consumer finance busi ...

, the Clean Ohio Council, and the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. In 2004, the governor also appointed Bradley to the "Jobs Cabinet." Following the resignation of Joseph T. Deters as state treasurer, Taft appointed Bradley to the post, effective January 2005. She resigned as lieutenant governor before taking her new post However, Bradley was defeated by conservative

Tea Party A tea party is a social gathering event held in the afternoon. For centuries, many societies have cherished drinking tea with a company at noon. Tea parties are considered for formal business meetings, social celebrations or just as an afternoon ...

-backed Ashtabula County Auditor

Sandra O'Brien Sandra O'Brien is a 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 the May 2006 Republican primary election.

Further career

In 2016, Bradley was among the 9 people chosen from over 100 candidates to serve on a committee to review the charter of the Columbus City Council.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bradley, Jennette State treasurers of Ohio Lieutenant Governors of Ohio State cabinet secretaries of Ohio African-American people in Ohio politics African-American women in politics Wittenberg University alumni Women in Ohio politics Living people 1952 births Ohio Republicans Columbus City Council members Women city councillors in Ohio 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women Black conservatism in the United States