Jim Doyle

James Edward Doyle Jr. (born November 23, 1945) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Wisconsin from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 41st attorney general of Wisconsin from 1991 to 2003.

Doyle was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Madison, Wisconsin. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Harvard Law School, he worked as a district attorney and in private practice. He was first elected governor in 2002, narrowly defeating incumbent Republican governor Scott McCallum, and was re-elected in 2006 by a wider margin, defeating congressman Mark Green.

Early life and education Jim Doyle was born on November 23, 1945, in Washington, D.C., the son of Ruth Bachhuber Doyle and James Edward Doyle, who were influential leaders of the post-1946 Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

Doyle graduated from Madison West High School in 1963 and attended Stanford University for three years, then returned to Madison to finish his senior year at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. After graduating from college and inspired by John F. Kennedy's call to public service, Doyle worked as a teacher with his wife, Jessica Doyle in Tunisia as part of the Peace Corps from 1967 to 1969. In 1972, Doyle earned his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. He then moved to the Navajo Indian Reservation in Chinle, Arizona, where he worked as an attorney in a federal legal services office.

Early political career In 1975, Doyle returned to Madison and served three terms as Dane County district attorney from 1977 to 1982. After leaving that office, he spent eight years in private practice. Doyle was elected attorney general of Wisconsin in 1990 and reelected in 1994 and 1998. Between 1997 and 1998, he served as the president of the National Association of Attorneys General. During his twelve years as attorney general, Doyle was considered tough on crime, but not unsympathetic to its causes. He also gained recognition as a result of several successful lawsuits against tobacco companies in the state.

Governor of Wisconsin (2003–2011)

Elections

Doyle ran against Republican Scott McCallum, the former lieutenant governor who had assumed the office of governor in 2001 after Tommy Thompson left to become Secretary of Health and Human Services in the George W. Bush administration. On election day, Doyle defeated McCallum by over four percent of the vote, becoming the first Democratic governor in the state since Anthony Earl was defeated in 1986. Libertarian nominee Ed Thompson (brother of Tommy) publicly critical of the negative campaigning of both major party candidates and garnered 10% of the vote.

Doyle defeated Republican Congressman Mark Green in 2006. Doyle topped Green 53% to 45% in a year in which no incumbent Democratic governor, senator, or congressman lost their reelection bid. During the campaign, Doyle was dogged by charges that Georgia Thompson, a state employee, had steered a travel agency contract to a firm whose principals had donated $20,000 to his campaign. Thompson was convicted in federal court in late 2006, which was reversed by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in 2007.

On January 2, 2009, Doyle joined the governors of four states in urging the federal government to provide $1 trillion in aid to the country's 50 state governments to help pay for education, welfare and infrastructure as states struggled with steep budget deficits amid a deepening recession.

On May 19, 2009, Doyle proposed a 75-cent-per-pack increase in the cigarette tax, an "assessment" against oil companies to help pay for road improvements, imposition of sales tax on music downloads and cell phone ringtones, and a 1 percent hike in the state income tax for individuals earning above $300,000 a year (approximately 1 percent of the state's population).

Retirement Doyle raised about $500,000 for a campaign fund in the first half of 2007, leading political analysts to think he would have been financially ready to run for a third term as governor. In a speech to the state Democratic Party convention on July 6, 2007, he said, "And at the end of these four years of working together, who knows, maybe we'll need four more."

As of 2016, Doyle was an attorney 'of counsel' in the Madison office of the law firm Foley & Lardner and served on the corporate board of Epic Systems and Exact Sciences.

Personal life Jim Doyle is a fifth-generation state officeholder in Wisconsin. Doyle is married to Jessica Laird Doyle, niece of former Congressman Melvin Laird, and great-granddaughter of William D. Connor, who was lieutenant governor of Wisconsin from 1907–1909, They have two adopted sons, Gus and Gabe, a daughter-in-law, Carrie, a grandson, Asiah, and granddaughters Lily and Lucy.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Attorney General (1990–1998)

Wisconsin Governor (2002, 2006)