Jesse White (politician)

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Jesse White
37th Secretary of State of Illinois
In office
January 11, 1999 – January 9, 2023
Governor
Preceded byGeorge Ryan
Succeeded byAlexi Giannoulias
Personal details
Born (1934-06-23) June 23, 1934 (age 89)
Alton, Illinois
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materAlabama State University
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army Illinois National Guard
Years of service1957-1959
Battles/warsVietnam War

Jesse Clark White (born June 23, 1934) is a Democratic American politician. He served as the 37th and the longest serving Secretary of State of Illinois and the first African American to hold this position. He decided to retire in 2022 instead of running for a seventh term.[1]

Early life[change | change source]

White was born in Alton, Illinois on June 23, 1934. He attended Alabama State University.

As Secretary of State[change | change source]

First elected to Secretary of State of Illinois in 1998, White was re-elected in 2002 by winning all 102 counties and garnering more than 2.3 million votes, the largest vote total by any candidate for Illinois statewide office in a quarter of a century. In 2006, White was re-elected to a third term, having received 63 percent of the vote statewide.[2] White was elected to a fourth term in 2010, the leading vote-getter in the entire state.[3]

Electoral history[change | change source]

  • 2010 Race for Secretary of State of Illinois
    • Jesse White (D) (inc.), 70%
    • Robert Enriquez (R), 27%
  • 2006 Race for Secretary of State of Illinois
  • 2002 Race for Secretary of State of Illinois
    • Jesse White (D) (inc.), 69%
    • Kristine O'Rourke Cohn (R), 29%
  • 1998 Race for Secretary of State of Illinois

References[change | change source]

  1. "Jesse White won't seek re-election in 2022". WAND-TV. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  2. "Search Vote Totals". Elections.state.il.us. Archived from the original on September 29, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2010.
  3. Hudzik, Sam (November 8, 2010). "The fallout: 2010 elections, one week later". City Room Blog. WBEZ. Retrieved November 21, 2010.[permanent dead link]

Other websites[change | change source]