Jay Nixon

Jeremiah Wilson "Jay" Nixon (born February 13, 1956) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 55th Governor of Missouri from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was first elected to the governorship in 2008 and reelected in 2012. Prior to his tenure as Missouri Governor, he served as the 40th Missouri Attorney General from 1993 to 2009. After leaving public office he joined the Dowd Bennett law firm in St. Louis. As of 2023, he is the most recent Democrat to serve as the Governor of Missouri. Early life Nixon was born and raised in De Soto, Missouri. His mother, Betty Lea Nixon (née Wilson), was a teacher and president of the local school board, and his father, Jeremiah "Jerry" Nixon, served as the city's mayor. One of his three paternal great-grandfathers, Abraham Jonas, was an early Jewish settler in Illinois and friend of former President Abraham Lincoln (one of Nixon's paternal great-grandmothers was Jewish, though Nixon is Methodist). His great-great-grandfather Charles Henry Jonas was the brother of Democratic U.S. Senator Benjamin F. Jonas of Louisiana and another, James Oscar Nixon, was a brother of U.S. Representative John Thompson Nixon of New Jersey. Another paternal ancestor, John Inskeep, served as Mayor of Philadelphia (from 1800—1801 and 1805—1806). Missouri State Senate (1987–1993) In 1986, after a period of private practice in his hometown, Jay Nixon was elected to the Missouri Senate from a district in Jefferson County, serving for two terms from 1987 to 1993. Missouri Attorney General (1993–2009)