Kathleen Sebelius

Kathleen Sebelius (2009)

Kathleen Gilligan Sebelius (born May 15, 1948 in Cincinnati , Ohio ) is an American politician of the Democratic Party . She was United States Secretary of Health in President Barack Obama's cabinet from April 28, 2009 to June 9, 2014 ; she had previously held the post of governor of the US state of Kansas since 2003 .

Early years and political advancement

Kathleen Sebelius is the daughter of former Democratic Party member and governor of Ohio (1971–1975) John J. Gilligan and his wife Mary Catherine b. Dixon.

The family - whose paternal ancestors from the Irish County Sligo had immigrated in the mid-19th century in the United States, settled in Cincinnati in 1857, where in 1877 the company Patrick Gilligan & Sons had founded - was strongly influenced by the Catholic faith. Kathleen Gilligan (Sebelius) grew up with her three siblings - sister Ellen and two brothers Donald and John - in Cincinnati. After attending the Summit Country Day School in Cincinnati, a Catholic secondary school, she studied political science at Trinity Washington University , a Roman Catholic university in Washington, DC in 1970, she graduated with a BA.

Eventually she finished her education at the University of Kansas . She moved to Kansas in 1974 at the age of 26. Sebelius is married to K. Gary Sebelius and has two sons. Sebelius is a member of the Democratic Party and was elected to the Kansas House of Representatives in 1986 . She held that mandate until 1994, when she became the director of the Kansas insurance regulator for the next eight years. For over 100 years she was the first member of the Democratic Party in this office.

Kansas Governor

Kathleen Sebelius was elected Governor of Kansas in 2002 and was introduced to her new office on January 13, 2003. She owed her election victory in part to the quarrels within the Republican Party , whose conservative wing fought violently with the more liberal forces in the party. During her first term in office, she spoke out against the right to bear arms in public. She vetoed a corresponding motion, but this was overruled by the legislature. The background to this was a series of rampages in various states of the USA, in which several people were shot. Sebelius promoted economic development and created new jobs in her country through her politics. The school system and health care were also expanded. In the government apparatus, savings were sought. B. sold about 700 unnecessary company vehicles. Such measures enabled her to finance her household without tax increases. In 2006 Kathleen Sebelius was confirmed in office with 57.8% of the vote.

Minister of Health

On February 28, 2009, President Obama asked Sebelius if she wanted to become the new Secretary of Health and Human Services in his cabinet ; the previous candidate Tom Daschle had resigned from office due to errors in his tax return. Sebelius accepted the offer on March 1, 2009; their appointment was confirmed by the US Senate on April 28 of the same year with 65:31 votes.

Sebelius' term of office was marked by the 2010 health reform (“Obamacare”) ; the introduction of general compulsory insurance was controversial and was accompanied by legal disputes . On April 10, 2014, Sebelius announced her resignation. This was completed in June of the same year when her successor Sylvia Mathews Burwell took office .

Web links

Commons : Kathleen Sebelius  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Kathleen Sebelius in the National Governors Association (English)
• Biography at the Kansas Historical Society (English)
• Kathleen Sebelius in the nndb (English)
• Literature by and about Kathleen Sebelius in the bibliographic database WorldCat (English)
• Kathleen Sebelius at the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia (English)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Smartvoter: Full Biography for John J. Gilligan
2. ^ NNDB: John J. Gilligan
3. ^ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: John Joyce Gilligan
4. ↑ History of Gilligan Funeral Homes ( Memento of the original from March 18, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
5. ^ Genuine Kansas: Kathleen Sebelius, governor
6. ↑ Whoswho in America: Profile: Kathleen Gilligan Sebelius  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ^ Trinity College: Kathleen Gilligan Sebelius '70, Secretary of the US Department of Health & Human Services
8. ^ Governor's Information: Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius
9. ^ CNN.com: Senate confirms Sebelius
10. ↑ American Health Minister Sebelius resigns , FAZ, April 11, 2014