Ron Saxton, Republican candidate for Governor of Oregon
Born and raised in Albany, Oregon, Ron Saxton graduated from West Albany High School in 1972 and was the first in his family to complete college, graduating from Willamette University and the University of Virginia Law School.
A passionate education advocate, Ron is recognized as one of Oregon's leading experts on education issues. He was elected to the Portland Public Schools Board in 1997 and served as its Chair from 1998-2000. Ron is also the founding President of the Portland Schools Foundation, a community-based organization that has raised more than $30 million in private contributions to improve student achievement and school performance in Oregon's largest school district.
Ron has also co-chaired the Oregon Higher Education Roundtable, chaired the
Cascade Pacific Council, Boy Scouts of America, and served as a board member of the Saturday Academy, a science and math mentoring program for Oregon's youth.
Ron and his wife Lynne, also a fourth-generation Oregonian, recently celebrated their 28 th anniversary. Lynne is the Executive Director of The Christie School, a charitable organization serving children and families throughout Oregon. Together, Lynne and Ron have one son, Andy, an engineer for an Oregon-based defense contractor.
Together, the Saxtons enjoy tennis, traveling, cooking and bike riding, as well as Ron's love for gardening, fly-fishing, baseball and jazz.
A lifelong Republican and common-sense conservative, Ron Saxton is the Republican candidate for Governor who is running to change the way Oregon's government operates.
~Joyce Comments: To find out where Ron Saxton is on issues click here.
Michael Steele, Lieutenant Governor of Maryland and candidate for U.S. Senate
- Became Maryland's FIRST statewide elected African-American.
- One of the first in his family to go to college - graduating from Johns Hopkins University, and receiving his law degree from Georgetown University.
- Named one of the Baltimore Sun's 2003 Legislative Session "Winners" for his efforts to work with both sides of the aisle.
Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele was the first African-American ever elected to statewide office in Maryland. Michael made history once again in October 2005, when he announced his candidacy for the state's open seat in the United States Senate.
Since taking office as Lieutenant Governor with Governor Robert Ehrlich in 2003, Michael has produced real solutions to the real problems facing Marylanders. The Lt. Governor has lead the fight to improve access to better-performing schools; worked alongside law enforcement officials to reduce crime and secure communities; strengthened the state's minority business program to foster greater entrepreneurship; and worked with Maryland conservationists to protect the environment for future generations.
Lt. Gov. Steele has helped redefine the state's goals and commitment towards small and minority businesses in Maryland as chair of the Governor's Commission on Minority Business Enterprise Reform. More recently, he chaired the Governor's Commission on Quality Education in Maryland, which recommended institutional reforms to improve the state's public education system.
Michael currently oversees the Governor's Office on Community Initiatives, partnering with faith-based, community and volunteer organizations to assist the state's most needy. Lt. Governor Steele also serves as a strong advocate for the preservation and advancement of the state's five Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Michael continues to work with the Maryland police and the Maryland Vehicle Theft Prevention Council to reduce crime and vehicle theft, and he has forged a strong partnership with the mayors of the state's 157 municipalities while strengthening ties between the state and local governments.
In 2002, President George W. Bush appointed Mr. Steele to serve a term on the Board of Visitors of the United States Naval Academy. His other affiliations include the State House Trust, the East Baltimore Development Corporation, the Export-Import Bank Advisory Committee and the Prince George's County Chapter of the NAACP.
A 2005 Aspen Institute-Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership, Lt. Governor Steele was recently awarded a Bethune-DuBois Institute 2005 Award for his work in the ongoing development of quality education in Maryland.
Lt. Governor Steele is a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Landover Hills, where he attends mass regularly with his wife Andrea and their two sons, Michael and Drew.
Ken Blackwell, Secretary of State and candidate for Governor of Ohio
Republican gubernatorial nominee and two-term Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is a staunch economic conservative providing Ohioans bold and experienced leadership. He believes controlling government spending and cutting taxes will kick-start Ohio's economy – creating jobs and economic prosperity.
Mr. Blackwell is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and a former member of the federal senior executive service. He is co-chairman of the board of directors of the Campaign Finance Institute in Washington, D.C. and a member of the Harvard Policy Group on Network- Enabled Services and Government. Mr. Blackwell is a member of the national advisory boards of the Princeton Review and Youth for Christ. He also is a former chairman of the U.S. Census Monitoring Board and member of the Advisory Panel of the Federal Elections Commission.
In 2002, he received meritorious recognition from the Center for Digital Government, and was recognized by Government Technology magazine as one of the top 25 public sector leaders in information technology. He is a past president of the National Electronic Commerce Coordinating Council. More than 25 years ago, he began his work in using technology to help government fulfill its mission and commitment to citizens as a member of the board of directors of Public Technology, Inc., located in Washington, D.C.
A certified government finance manager, Mr. Blackwell was a 1999 recipient of the Government Finance Officers Association’s Excellence in Government Award. He is on the board of directors of the National Taxpayers Union, the John M. Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs at Ashland University, and was formerly a domestic policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. He has served on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans. Mr. Blackwell was a delegate to the White House Summit on Retirement Savings in both 1998 and 2002. During the 1990s he served on the congressionally appointed National Commission on Economic Growth and Tax Reform, and in 1998, he co-edited a book with Jack Kemp, entitled, “IRS v. The People: Time for Real Tax Reform.”
Mr. Blackwell also has served on the boards of directors of the International Republican Institute, the American Council of Young Political Leaders, and the Congressional Human Rights Foundation. He was a scholar-in-residence at the Urban Morgan Institute for Human Rights at the University of Cincinnati College of Law.
As the U.S. Representative to the U.N. Human Rights Commission, he led the U.S. delegation to all four of the preparatory meetings for the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and presently serves on the advisory board of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs.
His international activities have taken him to 53 countries and strengthened his understanding of emerging international markets and the growth of democracy worldwide. Mr. Blackwell has held the nation’s highest security clearance, and has twice received the U.S. Department of State’s Superior Honor Award from the administrations of Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton for his work in the field of human rights.
Among his awards are honorary doctoral degrees from several institutions of higher education in Ohio, including Ashland University, Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, Lourdes College, Urbana University, Wilberforce University, and Wilmington College, as well as from Indiana Wesleyan University and Franklin Pierce College in New Hampshire. He is a recipient of the Veritas Award from Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, Connecticut and the President's Award for Public Service and Leadership from Central State University in Ohio.
In 1998, Mr. Blackwell delivered the Beckett Lecture on Religious Liberty at Oxford University. He also has lectured at Harvard, the University of Newcastle in England, the Moscow State Institute for International Relations in Russia, and the International Academy of Public Administration in Paris. Many of his speeches and lectures have been published in “Vital Speeches of the Day.”
Mr. Blackwell is a lifelong resident of Cincinnati. He was a founding partner of the highly successful Blue Chip Broadcasting Company. He and his wife of 37 years, Rosa, who currently serves as superintendent of Cincinnati Public Schools, have three adult children, Kimberly, Rahshann, and Kristin. In 1994, the Blackwells were honored as one of the National Council of Negro Women’s Families of the Year, and, in 1996, Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell together received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Dreamkeeper Award. He is a member of the Sigma Pi Phi fraternity. The Blackwells attend Bethlehem Temple Apostolic Church in Cincinnati.
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~Joyce Comments: To see where Ken Blackwell is on the issues click here.
Shelley Sekula Gibbs, At Large member of Houston City council and write-in candidate for House of Representatives District 22 in Texas
Dr. Sekula Gibbs is currently serving her third term as an At Large member of the Houston City council where she helped pass a much needed property tax roll back and assisted in securing $20 million in federal funds to train and hire more police for our area. As a strong proponent for regional Homeland Security, Shelley helped found the Ellington Field Task Force, which not only kept Ellington Field open but also expanded its mission by becoming a Joint Reserve Base. As an advocate for Johnson Space Center/NASA, Shelley works with local business leaders to ensure that Congress supports programs like the Crew Exploration Vehicle and the President's vision of returning to the moon and on to Mars. Shelley was a leader in bringing railroads, industry, and communities together to prevent the construction of the San Jacinto rail in Southeast Harris County that would have devastated property values and endangered thousands of nearby families. Moreover, she helped secure reduced rail transportation rates for captive petrochemical shippers. Understanding the need for economic development in the region, Shelley has worked with numerous municipalities and organizations to bring businesses and jobs to our area while improving transportation and air quality.
When Dr. Sekula Gibbs represents us in Washington, she will work tirelessly to:
- Secure America's Borders
- Reform Immigration Without Amnesty
- Protect Life and the Family
- Guard Against Restrictions to our Right to Bear Arms
- Replace Federal Income Tax with a Fair Tax, Reduce the Debt and Increase Jobs
- Preserve Ellington Field for Local and National Defense
- Support NASA and the Johnson Space Center
- Create a regional Research and Biotechnology hub
- Elliminate Frivilous Law Suits and Provide Affordable Health Insurance
Shelley Sekula Gibbs is a conservative Republican with a strong record of leadership, reform, and integrity. She is a successful businesswoman, wife, and mother who will well represent the citizens of Congressional District 22 while guarding the principles that are key to being a Republican and a patriotic American.
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